The Terzina Payload on NUSES: Silicon Photomultipliers Performance and Radiation Damage Mitigation in Low Earth Orbit
Silicon photomultipliers (SiPMs) are increasingly favored for detecting near-UV, visible, and infrared light in space due to their high sensitivity to single photons and compact design. While SiPMs offer several advantages over traditional photomultiplier tubes, their susceptibility to radiation and noise remains an issue. Our study intended to determine the optimal SiPM design for the Terzina Cherenkov satellite in sun-synchronous low Earth orbit (LEO) at an altitude of 550 km. To this end, we characterised several NUV-HD-MT SiPM variants, developed by Fondazione Bruno Kessler, and studied their responses to irradiation by exposing them to a 50 MeV proton beam and to electrons from the $\beta$-emitting source strontium-90. Experimental results were cross-validated with SPENVIS and Geant4 simulations. Based on our findings, we also propose an annealing strategy to mitigate radiation damage and ensure reliable performance in space-based applications.
Authors
- G. Panzarini (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2586-1021)
- Mauro D’Arco (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1641-8359)
- Uygar Atalay
- E. Bissaldi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9935-8106)
- John Krizmanic (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9690-9352)
- R. Battiston (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5808-7239)
- Felicia C. T. Barbato
- M. Mariotti (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3297-4128)
- Leandro Silveri (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6825-714X)
- F. Nozzoli (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4355-7947)
- Sindorjon Ashurov (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7748-7361)
- G. De Robertis (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8261-6236)
- F. Salamida (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9306-8447)
- Marco Mese (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1452-3542)
- Giulio Fontanella (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0008-9890-8397)
- R. Pillera (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3808-963X)
- F. Arneodo (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1061-0510)
- S. Garbolino (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5604-1395)
- Dimitrios Kyratzis (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5894-271X)
- Denise Boncioli (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1186-9353)
- F. Guarino (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1427-9885)
- Aleksei Smirnov (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0009-3334-9085)
- M. Mignone (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0006-2973-3103)
- I. De Mitri (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8665-1730)
- D. Serini (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9754-6530)
- Leonarda Lorusso
- Tengiz Ibrayev (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0003-1965-4645)
- Angela V. Olinto (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7374-376X)
- L. Burmistrov
- Irene Cagnoli
- D. Pattanaik (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1380-1187)
- Lorenzo Perrone (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8380-9643)
- Stefan Cristi Zugravel (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3352-9846)
- Daniele Cortis (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4272-7083)
- Riccardo Nicolaidis (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7895-8484)
- B. Panico (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1063-6961)
- Muhammd Abdullahi
- H.P. Lima (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7398-3237)
- F. Licciulli (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6955-0321)
- T. Montaruli (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5014-2152)
- P. Zuccon (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6132-754X)
- Artem Knyazev (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0006-5185-1624)
- D. Orlandi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5567-792X)
- Abhijit Roy (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0005-2824-655X)
- Rodrigo Alberto Torres Saavedra (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4531-6434)
- R. Iuppa (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5038-2762)
- L. Di Venere (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0703-824X)
- Pietro Antonio Palmieri
- Iqra Siddique (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0000-2515-6616)
- Piergiorgio Fusco
- Fabio Gargano
- Francesco Loparco
- A. Di Giovanni (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8462-4894)
- Mario Nicola Mazziotta
- Andrea Di Salvo (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8265-0327)
- Antonio Liguori
- Angelo Rivetti
- Yannick Favre
- Ritabrata Sarkar
- Valentina Scotti
- Giuseppe Osteria
- Johannes Eser
- Riccardo Rando
- Caterina Trimarelli
- Vincenzo Rizi
- Austin Cummings
- Franck Cadoux
- Roberto Aloisio
- Mario E. Bertaina
- Pierpaolo Savina
- Viviana Scherini
- Elisabetta Casilli
- M. Heller
- Mario Giliberti
- Shideh Davarpanah
- Sara Fogliacco
- David Shledewitz
Publication Details
- Published
- 2025-09-23
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.22323/1.501.0235
- Primary Topic
- Spacecraft Design and Technology
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00
Funders
- European Commission
- Schweizerischer Nationalfonds zur Förderung der Wissenschaftlichen Forschung
- Ministero dello Sviluppo Economico
- HORIZON EUROPE Framework Programme