Title: ARIANNA: A radio detector array for cosmic neutrinos on the Ross Ice Shelf Authors: Spencer R. Klein, for the ARIANNA collaboration
ARIANNA (The Antarctic Ross Ice Shelf Antenna Neutrino Array) is a proposed 100 km³ detector for ultra-high energy (above 10^17 eV) astrophysical neutrinos. It will study the origins of ultra-high energy cosmic rays by searching for the neutrinos produced when these cosmic rays interact with the cosmic microwave background. Over 900 independently operating stations will detect the coherent radio Cherenkov emission produced when astrophysical neutrinos with energy above 10^17 eV interact in the Antarctic Ross Ice Shelf. Each station will use 8 log periodic dipole antennas to look for short RF pulses, with the most important frequencies between 80 MHz and 1 GHz. By measuring the pulse polarisation and frequency spectrum, the neutrino arrival direction can be determined.
Title: A prototype station for ARIANNA: a detector for cosmic neutrinos Authors: Lisa Gerhardt, Spencer R. Klein, Thorsten Stezelberger, Steve Barwick, Kamlesh Dookayka, Jordan Hanson, Ryan Nichol
The Antarctic Ross Iceshelf Antenna Neutrino Array (ARIANNA) is a proposed detector for ultra-high energy astrophysical neutrinos. It will detect coherent radio Cherenkov emission from the particle showers produced by neutrinos with energies above about 10^17 eV. ARIANNA will be built on the Ross Ice Shelf just off the coast of Antarctica, where it will eventually cover about 900 km² in surface area. There, the ice-water interface below the shelf reflects radio waves, giving ARIANNA sensitivity to downward going neutrinos and improving its sensitivity to horizontally incident neutrinos. ARIANNA detector stations will each contain 4-8 antennas which search for brief pulses of 50 MHz to 1 GHz radio emission from neutrino interactions. We describe a prototype station for ARIANNA which was deployed in Moore's Bay on the Ross Ice Shelf in December 2009, discuss the design and deployment, and present some initial figures on performance. The ice shelf thickness was measured to be 572 ±6 m at the deployment site.
Neutrinos: Clues to the Most Energetic Cosmic Rays
We're constantly being peppered by showers of debris from cosmic rays colliding with atoms in the atmosphere. Cosmic rays aren't actually rays, of course, they're particles; ninety percent are protons, the nuclei of hydrogen atoms, and most of the rest are heavier nuclei like iron. Some originate from our own sun but most come from farther off, from the Milky Way or beyond.
ARIANNA (Antarctic Ross Ice Shelf Antenna Neutrino Array) will observe the shower of electrons, positrons, and other particles produced when a neutrino interacts in the ice below the ARIANNA detectors. Read more