Roden, NL – PHOTONIS, a leading electro-optic manufacturer, has announced that they have been selected to provide a key component to the Cosmic Ray Energetics and Mass (CREAM) experiment to study cosmic ray origins. PHOTONIS will provide a number of Hybrid Photo Diodes (HPDs) and their power supply units to the experiment.
The CREAM experiment involves a series of long duration balloon flights that provide extended exposure to and measurement of cosmic ray energies in order to understand their origin. CREAM is one of several experiments being conducted by the University of Maryland Cosmic Ray Physics Group.

PHOTONIS Hybrid Photo Diodes were considered ideal for the CREAM project due to their unique combination of low power, low weight, and high channel count as well as their ability to measure single photons. The HPDs will be used as critical sensors on a new calorimeter readout system, which measures the energies of ionized cosmic particles. The PHOTONIS HPDs will be installed as part of the CREAM VII flight, which is scheduled to launch in 2011.
The first CREAM experiment was launched in 2004. The experiment has performed five successful flights, accumulating data collection over a total of 158 days. The project group expects to launch at least five more flights. PHOTONIS will deliver the new HPDs to be included on the seventh flight, replacing PHOTONIS HPDs that were purchased for this project back in 2002.

PHOTONIS HPDs had previously been proven to be effective in accelerated particle energy measurement in the CERN Large Hadron Collider beauty (LHCb) experiment in 2008. CREAM has selected a similar PHOTONIS HPD model for inclusion in the new calorimeter readout system.
PHOTONIS is a multinational high-technology group, with more than 40 years experience in manufacture, sales and innovation, specializing in photo sensor technology. The Group operates Internationally in the Night Vision, Industrial, Scientific and Medical Imaging markets. PHOTONIS USA designs and manufactures a wide range of custom and standard components and assemblies for mass spectroscopy as well as other medical, bio-medical and scientific instruments and holds several patents in these fields.

Contact:
Margaret Cooley,
International Marketing Manager

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