X-ray Astronomical Polarimetry in the XEUS Era

X-ray Polarimetry is almost as old as X-ray Astronomy. Since the first discovery of X-ray sources theoretical analysis suggested that a high degree of linear polarization could be expected due either to the, extremely non thermal, emission mechanism or to the transfer of radiation in highly asymmetric systems. The actual implementation of this subtopic was, conversely, relatively deceiving. This is mainly due to the limitation of the conventional techniques based on the Bragg diffraction at 45deg, or on Thomson scattering around 90deg. Acually no X-ray Polarimeter has been launched since 25 years. Nevertheless the expectations from such measurement on several astrophysical targets including High and Low Mass X-Ray Binaries, isolated neutron Stars, Galactic and Extragalactic Black Holes is extremely attractive. We developed a new technique to measure the linear polarization of X-ray sources. It is based on the visualization of photoelectron tracks in a, finely subdivided, gas filled detector (micropattern). The initial direction of the photoelectron is derived and from the angular distribution of the tracks the amount and angle of polarization is computed. This technique can find an optimal exploitation in the focus of XEUS-1. Even in a very conservative configuration (basically the already existing prototype) the photoelectric polarimeter could perform polarimetry at % level on many AGNs. Further significant improvements can be expected from a technological development on the detector and with the use of XEUS-2 telescope

Tau/Charm Factory Accelerator Report

The present Report concerns the current status of the Italian Tau/Charm accelerator project and in particular discusses the issues related to the lattice design, to the accelerators systems and to the associated conventional facilities. The project aims at realizing a variable energy Flavor Factory between 1 and 4.6 GeV in the center of mass, and succeeds to the SuperB project from which it inherits most of the solutions proposed in this document. The work comes from a cooperation involving the INFN Frascati National Laboratories accelerator experts, the young newcomers, mostly engineers, of the Cabibbo Lab consortium and key collaborators from external laboratories

Breaking and Splitting asteroids by nuclear explosions to propel and deflect their trajectories

Splitting by atomic bombs an asteroid in flight is the best way to deflect its trajectory. How and when it should be done is described

O(a^2) cutoff effects in Wilson fermion simulations

We show that the size of the O(a^2) flavour violating cutoff artifacts that have been found to affect the value of the neutral pion mass in simulations with maximally twisted Wilson fermions is controlled by a continuum QCD quantity that is fairly large and is determined by the dynamical mechanism of spontaneous chiral symmetry breaking. One can argue that the neutral pion mass is the only physical quantity blurred by such cutoff effects. O(a^2) corrections of this kind are also present in standard Wilson fermion simulations, but they can either affect the determination of the pion mass or be shifted from the latter to other observables, depending on the way the critical mass is evaluated

Tau Air-Showers Signature of Ultra High Energy Neutrinos

The discover of Ultra High Energy Neutrino of astrophysical nature may be already reached. Indeed upward and horizontal tau Air-showers emerging from the Earth crust or mountain chains offer the best and most powerful signal of Ultra High Energy UHE neutrinos nu_tau}, bar\nu_tau and bar{\nu}_e at PeV and higher energy. The multiplicity in tau Air-showers secondary particles,N_{opt} =10^{12}, (E_tau}/ PeV, N_{\gamma}= 10^8 E_tau/ PeV, N_{e^- e^+}= 2 10^7 E_tau/PeV, N_mu =3 10^5 (E_tau/PeV)^{0.85}, make easy its over-amplified discover. Indeed UHE nu_tau, following Super Kamiokande evidence of neutrino flavour mixing, should be as abundant as nu_mu. Also anti-neutrino electrons, bar{\nu}_e, near the Glashow W resonance peak, E_{\bar{\nu_e}} = M^2_W / 2m_e, may generate tau Air-showers. Such horizontal tau air-showers by nu_{\tau}-N and UHE bar\nu_{e}-e at PeVs emerging from mountain high chain is one of the most power-full UHE neutrino imprint. Upward UHE nu_{\tau}- N interaction on Earth crust at horizontal edge and from below, their consequent UHE tau air-showers beaming toward high mountains should flash gamma,mu,X and Cherenkov lights toward detectors located on the top of the mountains or on balloons. Such upward tau air-shower may hit also nearby satellite flashing them by short, hard, diluted gamma-burst at the edge of most sensitive Gamma Ray Observatory BATSE threshold. We identify already these rarest gamma events with recent (1994) discovered upward Terrestrial Gamma Flashes (TGF); we show their very probable UHE tau-UHE \nu_\tau origin. Partial TGF Galactic signature and known galactic and extra-galactic source location are discovered within known 47 TGF events at low, 2 10^{-3}, probability threshold

Horizontal and Upward Tau Airshowers in Valleys from Mountains and Space: Discovering UHE Neutrinos and New Physics

Upward and horizontal tau Air-showers emerging from the Earth crust or mountain chains are the most powerful signals of Ultra High Energy UHE neutrinos nu_{tau}, bar\nu_{tau} and bar{nu}_e at PeVs and higher energy. The multiplicity in tau Air-showers secondary particles, N_{opt}=10^{12}(E_{tau}/PeV), N_{gamma}= 10^8*E_{tau}/PeV, N_{e^- e^+}= 2*10^7 E_{tau}/PeV, N_{mu}= 3 *10^5 (E_{tau}/PeV)^{0.85} make easy their discover. UHE nu_tau,bar\nu_tau, following Super Kamiokande evidence of neutrino flavor mixing, nu_mu<-->nu_tau, should be as abundant as nu_mu, bar\nu_mu. Also anti-neutrino electrons, bar\nu_e, near the Glashow W resonance energy peak, E_{bar\nu_e} = M^2_W / 2m_e = 6.3*10^{15} eV may generate tau Air-showers. Upward UHE nu_tau- N interaction on Earth crust at horizontal edge and from below, their consequent upward UHE tau air-showers beaming toward high mountains, air-planes, ballons and satellites should flash gamma, mu, X and Cherenkov lights toward detectors. Such upward tau air-shower may already hit nearby satellite GRO gamma detectors flashing them by short, hard, diluted gamma-burst at the edge of BATSE threshold. The tau air-shower may test the UHE neutrino interactions leading to additional fine-tuned test of New TeV Physics both in Mountain Valleys and in Upward showers

Resonances and Exclusive Channels: an Experimenter's Summary

A very remarkable number of new results in the study of resonances and exclusive channels has been presented at this conference giving fundamental information in the understanding of strong interactions at low energies. The first results from the new high luminosity colliders are impressive and a lot of activity in this field is foreseen for the future. The most relevant issues are summarized and discussed in this paper

Time Delay Between Gravitational Waves and Neutrino Burst From a Supernova Explosion: a Test for the Neutrino Mass

During Supernova explosions two signals, Gravitational burst wave and Neutrino Burst, of different nature, originated within 0.1 s from thesuper nova explosion will be radiated in the outer space. If the neutrinos (as well as the gravitons) are massless particles, than the original interval (if any) between the two signals will be freezed forever. On the contrary, if the neutrinos have a tiny mass, the time delay will increase during the propagation because of the slower velocity of the neutrinos with respect to the massless gravitons. Therefore, two signals, of different nature, originated within 0.1 s from the super nova explosion will be radiated in the outer space. If the neutrinos (as well as the gravitons) are massless particles, than the original interval (if any) between the two signals will be freezed forever. If the neutrino has a mass the time delay will increase during the propagation because of the slower velocity of the neutrinos with respect to the massless gravitons: the time delay detection may measure the neutrino mass or its absence may inferr a severe neutrino mass bound

Detecting Ultra High Energy Neutrinos by Upward Tau Airshowers and Gamma Flashes

Tau Air-showers are the best trace of rarest Ultra High Energy neutrinos UHE $\nu_{\tau}$, $\bar\nu_{\tau}$ and $\bar{\nu}_e$ at PeV and higher energy. $\tau$ Air-showers may generate billion times amplified signals by their secondaries . Horizontal amplified $\tau$ air-showers by $\nu_{\tau} N$ and UHE $\bar\nu_{e} e$ at PeV emerging from mountain chain might be the most power-full imprint. Upward UHE $\nu_{\tau} N$ interaction on Earth crust at horizontal edge and from below, their consequent UHE $\tau$ air-showers beaming toward high mountains should flash $\gamma$,$\mu$,X and optical detectors on the top. Upward $\tau$ air-shower may hit nearby satellite flashing them by short, hard, diluted $\gamma-$burst at the edge of Gamma Ray Observatory BATSE threshold. We identify these events with recent (1994) discovered upward Terrestrial Gamma Flashes (TGF) and we probed their UHE $\tau$ - UHE $\nu_\tau$ origin. From these TGF data approximated UHE $\nu_\tau$ flux and $\Delta m_{\nu_\mu \nu_\tau}$ sever lower bound are derived. Partial TGF Galactic signature is also manifest within known 47 TGF events clustered within three degrees from the Galactic plane at ${\simeq 2\cdot 10^{-3}}$probability. Well known $X-\gamma-\mathrm{TeV}$ active galactic and extragalactic sources have found probable counterpart in TGF arrival directions. Detection of elusive UHE $\nu_\tau$ seem finally achieved

CALDER: neutrinoless double-beta decay identification in TeO 2 bolometers with kinetic inductance detectors

Next-generation experiments searching for neutrinoless double-beta decay must be sensitive to a Majorana neutrino mass as low as 10 meV . CUORE , an array of 988 TeO 2 bolometers being commissioned at Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso, features an expected sensitivity of 50–130 meV at 90 % C.L. The background is expected to be dominated by α radioactivity, and can be in principle removed by detecting the small amount of Cherenkov  light emitted by the β signal. The Cryogenic wide-Area Light Detectors with Excellent Resolution project aims at developing a small prototype experiment consisting of TeO 2 bolometers coupled to high-sensitivity light detectors based on kinetic inductance detectors. The R&D; is focused on the light detectors in view of the implementation in a next-generation neutrinoless double-beta decay experiment