The Fog Chamber

Delivery of a fog chamber for cosmic ray detection by the subcooled vapour method, which, as a visual particle detector, will enable the observation and measurement of the trajectories of charged particles (electrons, positrons and alpha particles) originating from cosmic rays or radioactive emitters.

Required basic parameters

• detector viewing area of at least (45x45) cm2 covered by safety glass
• illumination of the detector volume (viewing area)
• equipment capable of operating almost continuously (7 days a week, at least 8 hours a day) with automatic timed on/off switching
• the equipment must be capable of inserting radioactive standards into the observation area and of maintaining them in a stable position during the observation period
• the equipment shall be equipped with wheels for transport to other areas

Design, manufacture and supply of a fog chamber for cosmic ray detection. It was a customized product of AtomiXs. The AtomiXs fog chamber is a device for visualizing the path of charged particles in supercooled alcohol vapor. The basis of the system is closed compressor cooling, supersaturated alcohol vapor and high voltage, which pulls charged ions into the fog belt. The AtomiXs fog chamber is composed of a cooling section and the visualization chamber itself. The cooling section consists of a fully closed coolant circuit. Two electronic circuits are located in the control unit. One for controlling the cooling circuit and the other for controlling the system. The visualization chamber includes thermal components controlled by electronics and sample inserts controlled by pushbuttons. The control board communicates with all system components, controls ionization, sets the temperature of the thermal circuit, controls lighting, controls alcohol circulation, and processes temperature readings.