  he DArk Matter Particle Explorer (DAMPE) is a general purposed
satellite-borne high energy $\gamma-$ray and cosmic ray detector, and among the
scientific objectives of DAMPE are the searches for the origin of cosmic rays
and an understanding of Dark Matter particles. As one of the four detectors in
DAMPE, the Plastic Scintillator Detector (PSD) plays an important role in the
particle charge measurement and the photons/electrons separation. The PSD has
82 modules, each consists of a long organic plastic scintillator bar and two
PMTs at both ends for readout, in two layers and covers an overall active area
larger than 82 cm $\times$ 82 cm. It can identify the charge states for
relativistic ions from H to Fe, and the detector efficiency for Z=1 particles
can reach 0.9999. The PSD has been successfully launched with DAMPE on Dec. 17,
2015. In this paper, the design, the assembly, the qualification tests of the
PSD and some of the performance measured on the ground have been described in
detail.
