Speakers
Description
The innermost tracking system of the CMS experiment consists of two tracking devices: the Silicon Pixel and Silicon Strip detectors. The tracker was specifically designed to very accurately determine the trajectory of charged particles or tracks, enabling precise reconstruction of primary and secondary vertices, as well as momentum measurements, in the high-luminosity environment of the LHC. Since the start of Run 3 in 2022, the CMS tracker has operated under increasingly demanding conditions, including higher instantaneous luminosities and increased pileup. In this talk, we present the current status and operational experience of the CMS tracker during Run 3, with a focus on its performance under these new conditions. We review key metrics including hit efficiency, alignment precision, tracking efficiency, and vertex resolution. The tracker has continued to perform at or near design specifications, benefitting from targeted improvements in alignment strategies, calibration workflows, and real-time monitoring. We also discuss the main challenges faced during Run 3, such as radiation-induced effects on sensors and electronics. In particular, aging effects due to cumulative radiation damage are becoming increasingly relevant and require careful monitoring and mitigation to ensure sustained performance.
