Hybrid multi micropattern gaseous photomultiplier for detection of liquid-xenon scintillation

Gaseous PhotoMultipliers (GPM) are a very promising alternative of vacuum PMTs especially for large-size noble-liquid detectors in the field of Functional Nuclear Medical Imaging and Direct Dark Matter Detection. We present recent characterization results of a Hybrid-GPM made of three Micropattern Gaseous Structures; a Thick Gaseous Electron Multiplier (THGEM), a Parallel Ionization Multiplier (PIM) and a MICROMesh GAseous Structure (MICROMEGAS), operating in Ne/CF4 (90:10). Gain values close to 107 were recorded in this mixture, with 5.9 keV x-rays at 1100 mbar, both at room temperature and at that of liquid xenon (T=171 K). The results are discussed in term of scintillation detection. While the present multiplier was investigated without photocathode, complementary results of photoextraction from CsI UV-photocathodes are presented in Ne/CH4 (95:5) and CH4 in cryogenic conditions.