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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.

The thermal vacuum / thermal balance test design and execution are described in the paper for the qualification campaign of 37 electronic units flown with the payload of ISS (International Space Station), i.e., AMS-02 (Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer). The tests are run in 10 separate test campaigns, across a time frame of 3 years (2002–2005). The tests have been carried on at NSPO (National Space Program Office in Taiwan), maximizing the time usage of thermal vacuum facilities. During each experimental campaign several units are tested at the same time, sharing the vacuum chamber volume. Because independent heaters are applied to each unit, the electronic crates can be tested at temperature levels different from one another. The reliability of thermal analysis is enhanced at each thermal balance test, with the final aim to fully validate the thermal mathematical model deviating less than 3°C from actual measurements.