Abstract
The long term goal of the ALICE experiment is to provide a precise characterization of the high-density, high-temperature phase of strongly interacting matter. To achieve this goal, high-statistics precision measurement are required. The general upgrade strategy for the ALICE detector is conceived to deal with this challenge with expected Pb-Pb interaction rates of up to 50 kHz aiming at an integrated luminosity of the order of 10 nb^-1. With the proposed timeline, starting the high-rate operation progressively after 2018 shutdown, the goals set up in our upgrade plans should be achieved collecting data until mid-2020's. In this document we present the main physics motivations for running the LHC with heavy ions at high luminosities and discuss the modifications and replacements needed in the ALICE detectors, the online systems and offline system. The schedule, cost estimate and organization of the upgrade programme are presented as well.
ALICE (A Large Ion Collider Experiment) is studying the physics of strongly interacting matter, and in particular the properties of the Quark–Gluon Plasma (QGP), using proton–proton, proton–nucleus and nucleus–nucleus collisions at the CERN LHC (Large Hadron Collider). The ALICE Collaboration is preparing a major upgrade of the experimental apparatus, planned for installation in the second long LHC shutdown in the years 2018–2019. These plans are presented in the ALICE Upgrade Letter of Intent, submitted to the LHCC (LHC experiments Committee) in September 2012. In order to fully exploit the physics reach of the LHC in this field, high-precision measurements of the heavy-flavour production, quarkonia, direct real and virtual photons, and jets are necessary. This will be achieved by an increase of the LHC Pb–Pb instant luminosity up to 6×1027 cm−2s−1 and running the ALICE detector with the continuous readout at the 50 kHz event rate. The physics performance accessible with the upgraded detector, together with the main detector modifications, are presented.