The focal plane detector of the magnetic spectrometer PRISMA

The characteristics and performance of the focal plane detector system developed for the magnetic spectrometer PRISMA are presented. It is composed of a multi-wire parallel plate avalanche counter (providing X, Y and timing signals) followed by a multi-parametric transverse field ionization chamber array (providing multiple ΔE signals). The detector array has been built to match the very large acceptance of PRISMA and provides optimal performance in the complete identification (nuclear charge, energy and mass) of nuclei produced in heavy-ion binary reactions.