297 research outputs found
A broadband FFT spectrometer for radio and millimeter astronomy
The core architecture, tests in the lab and first results of a Fast Fourier
Transform (FFT) spectrometer are described. It is based on a commercially
available fast digital sampler (AC240) with an on-board Field Programmable Gate
Array (FPGA). The spectrometer works continuously and has a remarkable total
bandwidth of 1 GHz, resolved into 16384 channels. The data is sampled with 8
bits, yielding a dynamic range of 48 dB. An Allan time of more than 2000 s and
an SFDR of 37 dB were measured. First light observations with the KOSMA
telescope show a perfect spectrum without internal or external spurious
signals.Comment: Astronomy and Astrophysics, in pres
In-flight calibration of STEREO-B/WAVES antenna system
The STEREO/WAVES (SWAVES) experiment on board the two STEREO spacecraft
(Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory) launched on 25 October 2006 is
dedicated to the measurement of the radio spectrum at frequencies between a few
kilohertz and 16 MHz. The SWAVES antenna system consists of 6 m long orthogonal
monopoles designed to measure the electric component of the radio waves. With
this configuration direction finding of radio sources and polarimetry (analysis
of the polarization state) of incident radio waves is possible. For the
evaluation of the SWAVES data the receiving properties of the antennas,
distorted by the radiation coupling with the spacecraft body and other onboard
devices, have to be known accurately. In the present context, these properties
are described by the antenna effective length vectors. We present the results
of an in-flight calibration of the SWAVES antennas using the observations of
the nonthermal terrestrial auroral kilometric radiation (AKR) during STEREO
roll maneuvers in an early stage of the mission. A least squares method
combined with a genetic algorithm was applied to find the effective length
vectors of the STEREO Behind (STEREO-B)/WAVES antennas in a quasi-static
frequency range () which fit best to the model
and observed AKR intensity profiles. The obtained results confirm the former
SWAVES antenna analysis by rheometry and numerical simulations. A final set of
antenna parameters is recommended as a basis for evaluations of the SWAVES
data
Radio Detection of Cosmic Ray Air Showers with Codalema
Studies of the radio detection of Extensive Air Showers is the goal of the
demonstrative experiment CODALEMA. Previous analysis have demonstrated that
detection around eV was achieved with this set-up. New results
allow for the first time to study the topology of the electric field associated
to EAS events on a event by event basis.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figures Proceedings of the Rencontres de Moriond, Very
High Energy Phenomena in the Universe, La Thuile, Italy (March 12-19, 2005
Radio Detection of Extensive Air Showers with CODALEMA
The principle and performances of the CODALEMA experimental device, set up to
study the possibility of high energy cosmic rays radio detection, are
presented. Radio transient signals associated to cosmic rays have been
identified, for which arrival directions and shower's electric field topologies
have been extracted from the antenna signals. The measured rate, about 1 event
per day, corresponds to an energy threshold around 5.10^16 eV. These results
allow to determine the perspectives offered by the present experimental design
for radiodetection of UHECR at a larger scale.Comment: 4 pages and 3 figures. To appear in the Proceedings of the 29th ICRC,
Pune (2005
Radiodetection of Cosmic Ray Extensive Air Showers
We present the characteristics and performance of a demonstration experiment
devoted to the observation of ultra high- energy cosmic ray extensive air
showers using a radiodetection technique. In a first step, one antenna narrowed
band filtered acting as trigger, with a 4 threshold above sky
background-level, was used to tag any radio transient in coincidence on the
antenna array. Recently, the addition of 4 particle detectors has allowed us to
observe cosmic ray events in coincidence with antennas
Radio Detection of Cosmic Ray Extensive Air Showers: present status of the CODALEMA experiment
Data acquisition and analysis for the CODALEMA experiment, in operation for
more than one year, has provided improved knowledge of the characteristics of
this new device. At the same time, an important effort has been made to develop
processing techniques for extracting transient signals from data containing
interference.Comment: september 200
Radio Detection of Cosmic Ray Air Shower by the CODALEMA Experiment
The possibilities of measuring Extremely High Energy Cosmic Rays (EHECR) by
radio detection of electromagnetic pulses radiated during the development of
extensive air showers in the atmosphere are investigated. We present the
demonstrative CODALEMA experiment, set up at Nancay Radio-Observatory (France).
The radio-decametric array has been adapted to measure radio transients in time
coincidence between antennas.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, Proceedings of the 9th Pisa Meeting on Advanced
Detectors, Isola d'Elba 2003, to be published in NIM
Radioelectric Field Features of Extensive Air Showers Observed with CODALEMA
Based on a new approach to the detection of radio transients associated with
extensive air showers induced by ultra high energy cosmic rays, the
experimental apparatus CODALEMA is in operation, measuring about 1 event per
day corresponding to an energy threshold ~ 5. 10^16 eV. Its performance makes
possible for the first time the study of radio-signal features on an
event-by-event basis. The sampling of the magnitude of the electric field along
a 600 meters axis is analyzed. It shows that the electric field lateral spread
is around 250 m (FWHM). The possibility to determine with radio both arrival
directions and shower core positions is discussed.Comment: Accepted for publication in Astroparticle Physic
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