The CMS silicon strip detector: Mechanical structure and alignment system

The CMS all-silicon tracker will cover a total area of 210 m**2 with 15232 detector modules. It will be by far the largest silicon strip detector ever built. It consists of 10 barrel layers and 2 multiplied by 9 end cap layers inside a volume of about 5.6 m length and 2.4 m radius. One of the biggest challenges in constructing and building the CMS silicon strip detector is its operation temperature at -20 degree C. This article will focus on the mechanical structure and on the tracker alignment system.