Construction of two large-size four-plane micromegas detectors

We report on the construction and initial performance studies of two micromegas detector quadruplets with an area of 0.5 m$^2$. They serve as prototypes for the planned upgrade project of the ATLAS muon system. Their design is based on the resistive-strip technology and thus renders the detectors spark tolerant. Each quadruplet comprises four detection layers with 1024 readout strips and a strip pitch of 415 $\mu$m. In two out of the four layers the strips are inclined by $\pm$1.5$^{\circ}$ to allow for the measurement of a second coordinate. We present the detector concept and report on the experience gained during the detector construction. In addition an evaluation of the detector performance with cosmic rays and test-beam data is given.