First in-beam studies of a Resistive-Plate WELL gaseous multiplier

We present the results of the first in-beam studies of a medium size (10 x 10 cm(2)) Resistive-Plate WELL (RPWELL): a single-sided THGEM coupled to a pad anode through a resistive layer of high bulk resistivity (similar to 10(9) Omega cm). The 6.2 mm thick (excluding readout electronics) single-stage detector was studied with 150 GeV muons and pions. Signals were recorded from 1 x 1 cm(2) square copper pads with APV25-SRS readout electronics. The single-element detector was operated in Ne/(5%CH4) at a gas gain of a few times 10(4), reaching 99% detection efficiency at average pad multiplicity of similar to 1.2. Operation at particle fluxes up to similar to 10(4) Hz/cm(2) resulted in similar to 23% gain drop leading to similar to 5% efficiency loss. The striking feature was the discharge-free operation, also in intense pion beams. These results pave the way towards robust, efficient large-scale detectors for applications requiring economic solutions at moderate spatial and energy resolutions.