Experimental Results from the Characterization of Diamond Particle Detectors with a High Intensity Electron Beam

Understanding the sources of ultra-fast failures, with durations of less than 3 LHC turns, is important for a safe operation of the LHC, as only passive protection is possible in these time scales. Diamond particle detectors with bunch-by-bunch resolution and high dynamic range have been successfully used to improve the understanding of some new ultra-fast loss mechanisms discovered in the LHC. To fully exploit their potential, diamond detectors were characterized with a high-intensity electron beam (10⁵ to 1010 electrons per shot). For the first time their efficiency and linearity has been measured in such a wide range of intensities. In this paper the experimental setup will be described and the signals of the different detectors will be discussed. Finally, future applications of these detectors in high-radiation applications will be discussed.