Segmented Silicon Detectors for Nuclear Reactions and Applied Physics: the HELICA Setup

Segmented silicon detectors offer a unique opportunity to investigate nuclear reactions at moderately low bombarding energies. They provide excellent resolution and modularity, which are highly required in modern nuclear and applied physics investigations. This record describes some of the basic features of HELICA, a novel assembly of modular hodoscopes for the analysis of nuclear reactions. The apparatus has an almost complete polar angle coverage and is capable to identify low energetic ions up to beryllium isotopes. It is equipped with ultra-thin silicon strip detectors and silicon photodiodes. Preliminary data of its commissioning run are shown in the record.