Toward a Km-Scale Neutrino Observatory: Digital Instrumentation

迈向公里级中微子观测站：数字仪器

• 批准号: 9818083
• 负责人: George Smoot
• 金额: $ 30万
• 依托单位: University of California-Berkeley
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 1999
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 1999-06-15 至 2001-11-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=9818083&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Toward; Km; Scale; Neutrino; Observatory

9818083Smoot This project consists of the development and construction of one string of fifty digital optical modules as the prototype for a next-generation neutrino detector array in the glacial ice at South Pole station. It is jointly supported by the NSF's Office of Polar Programs, the Division of Physics, the Division of Astronomical Sciences, and the Office of Multidisciplinary Activities in the Directorate for Mathematics and Physical Sciences. Neutrinos are produced by extremely energetic events in the universe, but interact only weakly with matter and thus require very large detector volumes. When an interaction does occur, it produces Cerenkov radiation in the visible range which can be tracked from the sequential arrival times of the light burst at different optical modules within the ice. Critical to the proper analysis and identification of neutrino events is the data acquisition, local signal processing, and information transfer from deep remote sensors to the surface analysis facility which may involve a path length of several kilometers. The current array of analog optical modules has disadvantages in that dispersion and attenuation degrade the signal quality. Optical fiber cable would preserve waveform information, but is costly and subject to damage during the installation of the module strings. These are frozen in the ice to depths of several kilometers and cannot be recovered for repair.A string of digital optical modules will be robust and reliable, and should provide high quality data from which complex events can be characterized with accurately reconstructed tracks. Operation of the fully instrumented string will be a cost-effective demonstration of the feasibility of implementing a full-scale neutrino telescope based on state-of-the-art digital system architecture.***

9818083Smoot该项目包括开发和建造一串50个数字光学模块，作为南极站冰川中下一代中微子探测器阵列的原型。它由NSF极地计划办公室、物理部、天文科学部以及数学和物理科学局的多学科活动办公室联合支持。中微子是由宇宙中极高能量的事件产生的，但与物质的相互作用很弱，因此需要非常大的探测器体积。当相互作用确实发生时，它会在可见范围内产生切伦科夫辐射，可以从光脉冲在冰层内不同光学模块的连续到达时间进行跟踪。对中微子事件的适当分析和识别至关重要的是数据采集、本地信号处理以及从深层遥感器到地面分析设施的信息传输，这可能涉及几公里的路径长度。当前的模拟光模块阵列存在色散和衰减降低信号质量的缺点。光纤电缆将保留波形信息，但成本较高，并且在安装模块串期间容易损坏。一串数字光学模块将是坚固和可靠的，应该提供高质量的数据，从这些数据中可以准确地重建出复杂事件的轨迹。全仪表式中微子望远镜的运行将以高性价比的方式展示基于最先进的数字系统架构的全尺寸中微子望远镜的可行性。