Effects of hadron irradiation on scintillating fibers

An important issue for trackers using scintillating fibers is the effect of the radiation existing in the detector cores on fiber properties. To study this question, some 600 fibers in the Fermilab C0 area have been irradiated, obtaining a hadronic irradiation at realistic rates. Maximum doses were about 80 krad. At these doses, corresponding to a few years of actual fiber-tracking detector operation, little degradation is observed. Recovery after several days' exposure to air has also been noted. Properties of unirradiated samples exhibit few if any, changes over eight months.<>