Radio Detection of High-energy Cosmic Rays at the Pierre Auger Observatory

Download or read book Radio Detection of High-energy Cosmic Rays at the Pierre Auger Observatory written by and published by . This book was released on 2007 with total page 4 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The southern Auger Observatory provides an excellent test bed to study the radio detection of extensive air showers as an alternative, cost-effective, and accurate tool for cosmic-ray physics. The data from the radio setup can be correlated with those from the well-calibrated baseline detectors of the Pierre Auger Observatory. Furthermore, human-induced radio noise levels at the southern Auger site are relatively low. We have started an R & D program to test various radio-detection concepts. Our studies will reveal Radio Frequency Interferences (RFI) caused by natural effects such as day-night variations, thunderstorms, and by human-made disturbances. These RFI studies are conducted to optimize detection parameters such as antenna design, frequency interval, antenna spacing and signal processing. The data from our initial setups, which presently consist of typically 3 - 4 antennas, will be used to characterize the shower from radio signals and to optimize the initial concepts. Furthermore, the operation of a large detection array requires autonomous detector stations. The current design is aiming at stations with antennas for two polarizations, solar power, wireless communication, and local trigger logic. The results of this initial phase will provide an important stepping stone for the design of a few tens kilometers square engineering array.