742 research outputs found
Hadron detection with a dual-readout fiber calorimeter
In this paper, we describe measurements of the response functions of a
fiber-based dual- readout calorimeter for pions, protons and multiparticle
"jets" with energies in the range from 10 to 180 GeV. The calorimeter uses lead
as absorber material and has a total mass of 1350 kg. It is complemented by
leakage counters made of scintillating plastic, with a total mass of 500 kg.
The effects of these leakage counters on the calorimeter performance are
studied as well. In a separate section, we investigate and compare different
methods to measure the energy resolution of a calorimeter. Using only the
signals provided by the calorimeter, we demonstrate that our dual-readout
calorimeter, calibrated with electrons, is able to reconstruct the energy of
proton and pion beam particles to within a few percent at all energies. The
fractional widths of the signal distributions for these particles (sigma/E)
scale with the beam energy as 30%/sqrt(E), without any additional contributing
terms
Dual-Readout Calorimetry with Lead Tungstate Crystals
Results are presented of beam tests in which a small electromagnetic
calorimeter consisting of lead tungstate crystals was exposed to 50 GeV
electrons and pions. This calorimeter was backed up by the DREAM Dual-Readout
calorimeter, which measures the scintillation and \v{C}erenkov light produced
in the shower development, using two different media. The signals from the
crystal calorimeter were analyzed in great detail in an attempt to determine
the contributions from these two types of light to the signals, event by event.
This information makes it possible to eliminate the dominating source of
fluctuations and thus achieve an important improvement in hadronic calorimeter
performance.Comment: Preprint submitted to Nucl. Instrum. Meth. on July 23, 200
Dual-readout Calorimetry
The RD52 Project at CERN is a pure instrumentation experiment whose goal is
to understand the fundamental limitations to hadronic energy resolution, and
other aspects of energy measurement, in high energy calorimeters. We have found
that dual-readout calorimetry provides heretofore unprecedented information
event-by-event for energy resolution, linearity of response, ease and
robustness of calibration, fidelity of data, and particle identification,
including energy lost to binding energy in nuclear break-up. We believe that
hadronic energy resolutions of {\sigma}/E 1 - 2% are within reach for
dual-readout calorimeters, enabling for the first time comparable measurement
preci- sions on electrons, photons, muons, and quarks (jets). We briefly
describe our current progress and near-term future plans. Complete information
on all aspects of our work is available at the RD52 website
http://highenergy.phys.ttu.edu/dream/.Comment: 10 pages, 10 figures, Snowmass White pape
New physics, the cosmic ray spectrum knee, and cross section measurements
We explore the possibility that a new physics interaction can provide an
explanation for the knee just above GeV in the cosmic ray spectrum. We
model the new physics modifications to the total proton-proton cross section
with an incoherent term that allows for missing energy above the scale of new
physics. We add the constraint that the new physics must also be consistent
with published cross section measurements, using cosmic ray observations,
an order of magnitude and more above the knee. We find that the rise in cross
section required at energies above the knee is radical. The increase in cross
section suggests that it may be more appropriate to treat the scattering
process in the black disc limit at such high energies. In this case there may
be no clean separation between the standard model and new physics contributions
to the total cross section. We model the missing energy in this limit and find
a good fit to the Tibet III cosmic ray flux data. We comment on testing the new
physics proposal for the cosmic ray knee at the Large Hadron Collider.Comment: 17 pages, 4 figure
Studies of the Response of the Prototype CMS Hadron Calorimeter, Including Magnetic Field Effects, to Pion, Electron, and Muon Beams
We report on the response of a prototype CMS hadron calorimeter module to
charged particle beams of pions, muons, and electrons with momenta up to 375
GeV/c. The data were taken at the H2 and H4 beamlines at CERN in 1995 and 1996.
The prototype sampling calorimeter used copper absorber plates and scintillator
tiles with wavelength shifting fibers for readout. The effects of a magnetic
field of up to 3 Tesla on the response of the calorimeter to muons, electrons,
and pions are presented, and the effects of an upstream lead tungstate crystal
electromagnetic calorimeter on the linearity and energy resolution of the
combined calorimetric system to hadrons are evaluated. The results are compared
with Monte Carlo simulations and are used to optimize the choice of total
absorber depth, sampling frequency, and longitudinal readout segmentation.Comment: 89 pages, 41 figures, to be published in NIM, corresponding author: P
de Barbaro, [email protected]
Cosmic Ray Energy Spectra and Mass Composition at the Knee - Recent Results from KASCADE -
Recent results from the KASCADE experiment on measurements of cosmic rays in
the energy range of the knee are presented. Emphasis is placed on energy
spectra of individual mass groups as obtained from an two-dimensional unfolding
applied to the reconstructed electron and truncated muon numbers of each
individual EAS. The data show a knee-like structure in the energy spectra of
light primaries (p, He, C) and an increasing dominance of heavy ones (A > 20)
towards higher energies. This basic result is robust against uncertainties of
the applied interaction models QGSJET and SIBYLL which are used in the shower
simulations to analyse the data. Slight differences observed between
experimental data and EAS simulations provide important clues for further
improvements of the interaction models. The data are complemented by new limits
on global anisotropies in the arrival directions of CRs and by upper limits on
point sources. Astrophysical implications for discriminating models of maximum
acceleration energy vs galactic diffusion/drift models of the knee are
discussed based on this data.Comment: 8 pages, 7 figures, to appear in Nuclear Physics B, Proceedings
Supplements, as part of the volume for the CRIS 2004, Cosmic Ray
International Seminar: GZK and Surrounding
A study on the sharp knee and fine structures of cosmic ray spectra
The paper investigates the overall and detailed features of cosmic ray (CR)
spectra in the knee region using the scenario of nuclei-photon interactions
around the acceleration sources. Young supernova remnants can be the physical
realities of such kind of CR acceleration sites. The results show that the
model can well explain the following problems simultaneously with one set of
source parameters: the knee of CR spectra and the sharpness of the knee, the
detailed irregular structures of CR spectra, the so-called "component B" of
Galactic CRs, and the electron/positron excesses reported by recent
observations. The coherent explanation serves as evidence that at least a
portion of CRs might be accelerated at the sources similar to young supernova
remnants, and one set of source parameters indicates that this portion mainly
comes from standard sources or from a single source.Comment: 13 pages, 4 figures, accepted for publication in SCIENCE CHINA
Physics, Mechanics & Astronomy
Relic Neutrino Absorption Spectroscopy
Resonant annihilation of extremely high-energy cosmic neutrinos on big-bang
relic anti-neutrinos (and vice versa) into Z-bosons leads to sizable absorption
dips in the neutrino flux to be observed at Earth. The high-energy edges of
these dips are fixed, via the resonance energies, by the neutrino masses alone.
Their depths are determined by the cosmic neutrino background density, by the
cosmological parameters determining the expansion rate of the universe, and by
the large redshift history of the cosmic neutrino sources. We investigate the
possibility of determining the existence of the cosmic neutrino background
within the next decade from a measurement of these absorption dips in the
neutrino flux. As a by-product, we study the prospects to infer the absolute
neutrino mass scale. We find that, with the presently planned neutrino
detectors (ANITA, Auger, EUSO, OWL, RICE, and SalSA) operating in the relevant
energy regime above 10^{21} eV, relic neutrino absorption spectroscopy becomes
a realistic possibility. It requires, however, the existence of extremely
powerful neutrino sources, which should be opaque to nucleons and high-energy
photons to evade present constraints. Furthermore, the neutrino mass spectrum
must be quasi-degenerate to optimize the dip, which implies m_{nu} >~ 0.1 eV
for the lightest neutrino. With a second generation of neutrino detectors,
these demanding requirements can be relaxed considerably.Comment: 19 pages, 26 figures, REVTeX
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