Pixel Sensor Module Assembly Procedures for The CMS High Luminosity LHC Upgrade

The high luminosity phase of the LHC, poised to start taking data in 2027, aims to increase the instantaneous luminosity of the machine to 7.5 x 10³⁴ cm^-2 s^-1. This will make it possible for experiments at CERN to make higher precision measurements on known physics phenomenon as well as to search for “new physics”. However, this motivates the need for hardware upgrades at the various experiments in order to ensure compatibility with the HL-LHC. This thesis describes some of the efforts to upgrade the inner-most layers of the Compact Muon Solenoid, namely the CMS silicon pixel tracking detector.

Silicon sensors used to track particles are installed in the detector as part of a pixel sensor module. Modules consist of a silicon sensor-readout chip assembly that is wire-bonded to an HDI, or High Density Interconnects to provide power and signals.

As part of the upgrade, 2,541 modules need to be assembled delicately and identically with alignment error margins as low as 10 microns. Assembly will be across three production sites in clean rooms to avoid dust and humidity contamination.

In addition, the modules need to survive high magnetic fields and extended close-range radiation as part of the HL-LHC.

In line with this effort, new materials and assembly procedures able to sustain such damage are investigated. Techniques to assemble modules are explored, specifically precision placing of parts with a robotic gantry and techniques to protect wirebonds. This is followed by a discussion of the accuracy and repeatability.