Handling system design as part of the NUMEN experiment at the Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare

This thesis studies the semi-automated handling of detectors as part of the NUMEN experiment. NUMEN is a project approved by “Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare” and is based on the upgrade of the pre-existing MAGNEX spectrometer at Laboratori Nazionali del Sud in Catania. Until now, all the MAGNEX tests have been performed using a low intensity line, but to collect more statistics, a new cyclotron that will produce more intense ion beams with a wider energy range per nucleon is being installed. An upgrade of the MAGNEX spectrometer is then necessary. Many components will be replaced with new versions that can tolerate higher radiation levels and most of the manual steps required to change the experimental set-up during the tests will be automated. This thesis focuses on this last point, with the aim of studying and designing a high precision self-moving structure to place groups of gamma detectors in the right spot. Using a trial-and-error method based on the update of a preliminary test, a final structure is designed to sustain all the 25 detectors belonging to the “upstream inferior quarter” in the working position. It is based on a manual Stewart platform, an element that allows the positioning correction of the detectors’ supporting shell in all six principal directions with the high precision required. Due to a system of linear bearings, the structure can also horizontally move from the working to maintenance position, allowing technicians to substitute the gamma detectors without being exposed to the induced radiations of the scattering chamber. In this thesis, it was necessary to solve many problems that arose during the design phase, expanding the know-how related to high precision positioning systems. Moreover, the collaboration with several companies operating in the precision mechanics field allowed for a better understanding on how to approach the design of a new mechanical component.