Advancements in CERN's Radiation Monitoring and Data Analysis Solutions for Radiation to Electronics applications

This thesis focuses on the aspects related to the protection of electronics in the CERN radiation environment, also known as Radiation Hardness Assurance. In particular, the two core pillars are investigated, namely i) characterization of the CERN's radiation environment through the currently available radiation monitors, ii) applications of commercial silicon solid-state detectors for monitoring radiation fields and particle beams (relevant for electronics testing).

In the first thesis branch, the focus is on the two largest CERN accelerators, the SPS and the LHC, Thanks to multiple complementary radiation monitors, such as Beam Loss Monitors, Optical Fibers, and RadMons, and developed data analysis software solutions, the comprehensive view of the radiation spatial distribution and its time evolution. In the case of the SPS, the focus is on the 2021 operation and related beam loss mechanisms. For LHC, the accelerator restart in 2022 is covered.

The second branch covers a silicon solid-state detector calibration and applications. Within the calibration, the detector response in proton-, neutron-, and heavy-ion beams is demonstrated. Furthermore, it is shown how the detector can be used for complete beam monitoring, in terms of flux, energy, and spatial distribution. The silicon detector-related work is concluded with the applications for radiation field characterization, such as atmospheric or accelerator one. The work covers also engineering aspects that enabled the synthesis of the related huge datasets.