Grimani, C.C.GrimaniFabi, M.M.FabiLobo, A.A.LoboMateos, I.I.MateosTELLONI, DanieleDanieleTELLONI2020-03-262020-03-2620150264-9381http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12386/23592Metal free-floating test masses aboard the future interferometers devoted to gravitational wave detection in space are charged by galactic and solar cosmic rays with energies \gt 100 MeV/n. This process represents one of the main sources of noise in the lowest frequency band (\lt 10<SUP>-3</SUP> Hz) of these experiments. We study here the charging of the LISA Pathfinder (LISA-PF) gold-platinum test masses due to galactic cosmic-ray (GCR) protons and helium nuclei with the Fluka Monte Carlo toolkit. Projections of the energy spectra of GCRs during the LISA-PF operations in 2015 are considered. This work was carried out on the basis of the solar activity level and solar polarity epoch expected for LISA-PF. The effects of GCR short-term variations are evaluated here for the first time. Classical Forbush decreases, GCR variations induced by the Sun rotation, and fluctuations in the LISA-PF frequency bandwidth are discussed.STAMPAenArticle10.1088/0264-9381/32/3/0350012-s2.0-84921033934000349155600002https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/0264-9381/32/3/0350012015CQGra..32c5001GFIS/05 - ASTRONOMIA E ASTROFISICA