Superconducting Magnetic Spectrometer for Cosmic Ray Nuclei

Abstract

This paper describes the design, calibration, and operation of a magnetic spectrometer for particle astronomy. The spectrometer consists of a superconducting magnet, optical spark chambers, scintillation detectors, and associated electronics. The instrument has been flown in a balloon gondola to 4.8 g/cm² residual atmosphere, where it was used to analyze the charge and differential rigidity spectra of primary nuclei from 5 to 100 GeV/c.