991 research outputs found
Tagging single muons and other long-flying relativistic charged particles by ultra-fast timing in air Cherenkov telescopes
Atmospheric air Cherenkov telescopes are successfully used for ground-based,
very high-energy (VHE) gamma ray astronomy. Triggers from the so-called single
muon and other long-flying relativistic charged particle events are an unwanted
background for the Cherenkov telescope. Because of low rate at TeV energies the
muon background is unimportant. It is much more intense for telescopes with
high photon sensitivity and low energy threshold. Below a few hundred GeV
energy, the so-called muon background becomes so intense, that it can
deteriorate the sensitivity of telescopes (the so-called muon-wall problem).
From general considerations it can be anticipated that the signature of these
particles should be a light pulse with a narrow time structure. In fact,
simulations show that the pulses from muons have a very narrow time profile
that is well below the time resolutions of nearly all currently operating
telescopes. In this report we elaborate on the time profile of Cherenkov light
from the so-called single muons and show that a telescope with ultra-fast time
response can open a new dimension allowing one to tag and to reject those
events.Comment: Accepted by Astroparticle Physic
A 15 deg Wide Field of View Imaging Air Cherenkov Telescope
Contemporary imaging air Cherenkov telescopes (IACT) for ground-based very
high energy (VHE) gamma ray astronomy have prime focus optical design.
Typically these telescopes have a 2-4 deg wide field of view (FoV). They use
f/0.7-f/1.2 optics and provide 3-10 arcmin resolution in the FoV. Generally, a
well designed telescope that includes more than one optical element will offer
some advantages not available in prime focus designs, such as a wider FoV, a
more compact size, a higher and more homogeneous resolution and a lower degree
of isochronous distortion of light rays focused onto the focal plane. Also,
they allow monitoring the gamma ray activity in a sizeable portion of the sky
in a single observation. This would allow one to perform a sensitive all-sky
survey in a relative short time. We present an f/0.8 15 deg wide FoV telescope
design, which provides a high and near uniform resolution and low isochronous
distortion across the entire FoV.Comment: 12 pages, 5 figures, accepted for publication in Astroparticle
Physic
Hubble Diagram of Gamma-Rays Bursts calibrated with Gurzadyan-Xue Cosmology
Gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) being the most luminous among known cosmic objects
carry an essential potential for cosmological studies if properly used as
standard candles. In this paper we test with GRBs the cosmological predictions
of the Gurzadyan-Xue (GX) model of dark energy, a novel theory that predicts,
without any free parameters, the current vacuum fluctuation energy density
close to the value inferred from the SNIa observations. We also compare the GX
results with those predicted by the concordance scenario -CDM.
According to the statistical approach by Schaefer (2007), the use of several
empirical relations obtained from GRBs observables, after a consistent
calibration for a specific model, enables one to probe current cosmological
models. Based on this recently introduced method, we use the 69 GRBs sample
collected by Schaefer (2007); and the most recently released SWIFT satellite
data (Sakamoto et al. 2007) together with the 41 GRBs sample collected by
Rizzuto et al. (2007), which has the more firmly determined redshifts. Both
data samples span a distance scale up to redshift about 7. We show that the GX
models are compatible with the Hubble diagram of the Schaefer (2007) 69 GRBs
sample. Such adjustment is almost identical to the one for the concordance
-CDM.Comment: 9 pages, 17 figures, 11 tables; Astr. & Astrophys. (in press
The Active Mirror Control of the MAGIC Telescope
One of the main design goals of the MAGIC telescopes is the very fast
repositioning in case of Gamma Ray Burst (GRB) alarms, implying a low weight of
the telescope dish. This is accomplished by using a space frame made of carbon
fiber epoxy tubes, resulting in a strong but not very rigid support structure.
Therefore it is necessary to readjust the individual mirror tiles to correct
for deformations of the dish under varying gravitational load while tracking an
object. We present the concept of the Active Mirror Control (AMC) as
implemented in the MAGIC telescopes and the actual performance reached.
Additionally we show that also telescopes using a stiff structure can benefit
from using an AMC.Comment: Contribution to the 30th ICRC, Merida, Mexico, July 2007 on behalf of
the MAGIC Collaboratio
A method to measure the mirror reflectivity of a prime focus telescope
We have developed a method to measure the mirror reflectivity of telescopes. While it is relatively easy to measure the local reflectivity of the mirror material, it is not so straightforward to measure the amount of light that it focuses in a spot of a given diameter. Our method is based on the use of a CCD camera that is fixed on the mirror dish structure and observes simultaneously part of the telescope's focal plane and the sky region around its optical axis. A white diffuse reflecting disk of known reflectivity is fixed in the telescopes focal plane. During a typical reflectivity measurement the telescope is directed to a selected star. The CCD camera can see two images of the selected star, one directly and another one as a spot focused by the mirror on the white disk. The ratio of the reflected starlight integrated by the CCD from the white disk to the directly measured one provides a precise result of the product of (mirror area x mirror reflectivity)
Study of the performance and capability of the new ultra-fast 2 GSample/s FADC data acquisition system of the MAGIC telescope
In February 2007 the MAGIC Air Cherenkov Telescope for gamma-ray astronomy
was fully upgraded with an ultra fast 2 GSamples/s digitization system. Since
the Cherenkov light flashes are very short, a fast readout can minimize the
influence of the background from the light of the night sky. Also, the time
structure of the event is an additional parameter to reduce the background from
unwanted hadronic showers. An overview of the performance of the new system and
its impact on the sensitivity of the MAGIC instrument will be presented.Comment: Contribution to the 30th ICRC, Merida Mexico, July 2007 on behalf of
the MAGIC Collaboratio
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