The virtual cathode chamber

We describe the operating principle and the first experimental results obtained with gas micro-strip detectors realized with anodes only on the active side, the multiplying field being provided from the back-plane and drift electrodes. For high-rate operation, the detector has to be implemented on electron-conducting supports, with resistivity around 1011 Ω cm. By construction, the “Virtual Cathode Chamber” is not subjected to the possibility of discharges between anodes and cathodes, thus avoiding one of the most dangerous problems met with standard micro-strip chambers.