The AMS Experiment

This is the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS-02) instrument. It is a large cosmic ray experiment for the International Space Station. It sits on the outside of the station, looking out into space. High-energy particles pass through AMS, interacting with different detectors on the way. Each detector contributes a bit of information about the particle; by combining all of the information, we can identify the particles, and hopefully learn where they come from.


		Click on the links, or the picture, to learn how the different subsystems work! You can learn about the six particle detection systems, and several of the important support systems. On top of AMS, a transition radiation detector tells us the velocities the highest-energy particles. The silicon tracker follows a particle's path through the instrument. A superconducting magnet makes the particle's path curve. Two time-of-flight counters tell us lower-energy particles' speeds. Two star tracker cameras measure AMS's orientation in space. Underneath AMS, a ring-imaging Cerenkov detector makes an extremely-accurate velocity measurement for fast particles. Some particles crash violently into the electromagnetic calorimeter, which measures their energy and type. An anti-coincidence veto counter notices stray particles sneaking through AMS sideways. Not pictured: Everything is held up by the unique support structure, served by several racks of custom electronics, and kept cool by a thermal control system. To see what AMS will look like when assembled, click here.