A. D. Supanitsky

Underground muon counters as a tool for composition analyses

Abstract The transition energy from galactic to extragalactic cosmic ray sources is still uncertain, but it should be associated either with the region of the spectrum known as the second knee or with the ankle. The baseline design of the Pierre Auger Observatory was optimized for the highest energies. The surface array is fully efficient above 3xa0×xa010 18 xa0eV and, even if the hybrid mode can extend this range below 10 18 xa0eV, the second knee and a considerable portion of the wide ankle structure are left outside its operating range. Therefore, in order to encompass these spectral features and gain further insight into the cosmic ray composition variation along the transition region, enhancements to the surface and fluorescence components of the baseline design are being implemented that will lower the full efficiency regime of the Observatory down to ∼10 17 xa0eV. The surface enhancements consist of a graded infilled area of standard Auger water Cherenkov detectors deployed in two triangular grids of 433xa0m and 750xa0m of spacing. Each surface station inside this area will have an associated muon counter detector. The fluorescence enhancement, on the other hand, consists of three additional fluorescence telescopes with higher elevation angle (30°–58°) than the ones in operation at present. The aim of this paper is threefold. We study the effect of the segmentation of the muon counters and find an analytical expression to correct for the under counting due to muon pile-up. We also present a detailed method to reconstruct the muon lateral distribution function for the 750xa0m spacing array. Finally, we study the mass discrimination potential of a new parameter, the number of muons at 600xa0m from the shower axis, obtained by fitting the muon data with the above mentioned reconstruction method.

A new composition-sensitive parameter for ultra-high energy cosmic rays

Abstract A new family of parameters intended for composition studies in cosmic ray surface array detectors is proposed. The application of this technique to different array layout designs has been analyzed. The parameters make exclusive use of surface data combining the information from the total signal at each triggered detector and the array geometry. They are sensitive to the combined effects of the different muon and electromagnetic components on the lateral distribution function of proton and iron initiated showers at any given primary energy. Analytical and numerical studies have been performed in order to assess the reliability, stability and optimization of these parameters. Experimental uncertainties, the underestimation of the muon component in the shower simulation codes, intrinsic fluctuations and reconstruction errors are considered and discussed in a quantitative way. The potential discrimination power of these parameters, under realistic experimental conditions, is compared on a simplified, albeit quantitative way, with that expected from other surface and fluorescence estimators.

On the possibility of primary identification of individual cosmic ray showers

Abstract The transition between the Galactic and extragalactic cosmic ray components could take place either in the region of the spectrum known as the second knee or in the ankle. There are several models of the transition but it is not possible to confirm or even rule out any of them from the flux measurement alone. Therefore, the measurement of the composition as a function of primary energy will play a fundamental role for the understanding of this phenomenon. In this work we study the possibility of primary identification in an event by event basis in the ankle region, around E = 10 18 eV . We consider as case study the enhancements of the Pierre Auger Southern Observatory, which are under construction in Malague, Province of Mendoza, Argentina. We use a non-parametric technique to estimate the density functions, from Monte Carlo data, corresponding to different combination of mass sensitive parameters and type of primaries. These estimates are used to obtain the classification probability of protons and iron nuclei for the different combination of parameters considered. We find that, after considering all relevant fluctuations, the maximum classification probability obtained combining surface and fluorescence detectors parameters is of order of 90%.

Neutrino initiated cascades at mid and high altitudes in the atmosphere

Neutrinos are a very promising mes- senger at tens of EeV and above. They can be produced by several channels, namely as by products of hadronic interactions at the sources, as the main products of the decay of super massive particles and, in a guaranteed way, as the result of the propagation of UHECR through the bath of microwave relic photons. A new era of very large exposure space observatories, of which the JEM-EUSO mission is a prime example, is on the horizon and, with it, it is even larger the possibility of astrophysical neutrino detection at the highest energies. In the present work we use a combination of the PYTHIA interaction code with the CONEX shower simulation package in order to produce fast one-dimensional simulations of neutrino initiated showers in air. We make a detail study of the structure of the corresponding longitudinal profiles, but focus our physical analysis mainly on the development of showers at mid and high altitudes, where they can be an interesting target for space fluorescence observatories.

A new numerical technique to determine primary cosmic ray composition in the ankle region

Abstract In this paper we introduce a new multiparametric technique that attempts to tackle simultaneously the problems of composition determination and hadronic interaction uncertainty. Employing simulations of a real world detector under its planned operational conditions, and disregarding systematics, we can asses that the present technique should be able to determine the composition of a binary mixture of p and Fe with a statistical confidence of few percent, in a way that is independent of the assumed hadronic interaction model. Moreover, the combination of real data with the tools developed and presented here should give an indication of the reliability of the various hadronic interaction models in current use in the area. We center our study in the region of the ankle, where composition carries critical astrophysical information, and use two main parameters: the number of muons at 600xa0m from the shower axis and the depth of the shower maximum obtained from the hybrid operation of the planned muon counters and high elevation fluorescence telescopes of the AMIGA and HEAT Auger enhancements.

Effect of multiple reusing of simulated air showers in detector simulations

The study of high energy cosmic rays requires detailed Monte Carlo simulations of both, extensive air showers and the detectors involved in their detection. In particular, the energy calibration of several experiments is obtained from simulations. Also, in composition studies simulations play a fundamental role because the primary mass is determined by comparing experimental with simulated data. At the highest energies the detailed simulation of air showers is very costly in processing time and disk space due to the large number of secondary particles generated in interactions with the atmosphere. Therefore, in order to increase the statistics, it is quite common to recycle single showers many times to simulate the detector response. As a result, the events of the Monte Carlo samples generated in this way are not fully independent. In this work we study the artificial effects introduced by the multiple use of single air showers for the detector simulations. In particular, we study in detail the effects introduced by the repetitions in the kernel density estimators which are frequently used in composition studies.

Extreme high energy proton-gamma discrimination from space observations

Abstract The origin of the highest energy cosmic rays is still unknown. At present, the major uncertainties are located at energies above ∼1019.5xa0eV, the expected beginning of the GZK suppression. This is mainly due to the low statistics available, a problem that will be addressed in unprecedented way by the upcoming orbital detectors like JEM-EUSO. The detection of very high energy photons is of great relevance for the understanding of the origin of this extreme energy cosmic rays (EECR), due to the astrophysical information content. However, their discrimination is an experimental challenge for current and future cosmic ray detectors. In this work we study the statistical separation between hadron and photon showers from space observations at energies where both, the Landau–Pomeranchuk–Migdal (LPM) effect and magnetospheric interactions are important for the development of the cascades. We base our analysis on the Xmax parameter, which is already a well known composition discrimination parameter for ground based fluorescence observatories. Our analysis applies to orbiting detectors in general. Nevertheless, we exemplify the practical utilization of our technique by estimating a general upper limit to the photon fraction in the integral flux, attainable by an ideal orbital detector with characteristics similar to JEM-EUSO. In the process we describe the resultant asymmetry in the photon–hadron discrimination efficiency in galactic coordinates.