Study of accuracy in the position determination with SALSA, a γ-scanning system for the characterization of segmented HPGe detectors

Accurate characterization of the electric response of segmented high-purity germanium (HPGe) detectors as a function of the interaction position is one of the current goals of the Nuclear Physics community seeking to perform γ-ray tracking or even imaging with these detectors. For this purpose, scanning devices must be developed to achieve the signal-position association with the highest precision. With a view to studying the accuracy achieved with SALSA, the SAlamanca Lyso-based Scanning Array, here we report a detailed study on the uncertainty sources and their effect in the position determination inside the HPGe detector to be scanned. The optimization performed on the design of SALSA, aimed at minimizing the effect of the uncertainty sources, afforded an intrinsic uncertainty of ∼2 mm for large coaxial detectors and ∼1 mm for planar ones.