The AMS-TOF and ECAL Thermal Tests in Vacuum at SERMS

The AMS-02 experiment is a space-born instrument designed to perform high precision measurements of cosmic rays and γ-ray fluxes on board of the International Space Station (ISS). All the components of the AMS experiment are designed to withstand the mechanical stresses in the launch phase and to operate in vacuum in a wide range of temperatures. In order to verify the performance of the hardware in harsh conditions like the flight ones, all the components of the AMS instruments undergo a severe qualification procedure before the integration into the detector. In this paper, we will report on the thermo-vacuum tests on the L-TOF (Lower Time of Flight) and ECAL (Electromagnetic CALorimeter) detectors, successfully performed in the SERMS laboratory in June and September 2006, respectively.