CAREER: Searching for Dark Matter and Studying Galactic Particle Accelerators with VERITAS

职业：与 VERITAS 一起寻找暗物质并研究银河粒子加速器

• 批准号: 1352567
• 负责人: Brian Humensky
• 金额: $ 79.97万
• 依托单位: Columbia University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 2014
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2014-02-01 至 2020-07-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1352567&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: CAREER; Searching; Dark; Matter; Studying

Gamma-ray astronomy impacts a broad range of key science questions: indirect dark matter detection and tests of fundamental physical laws; cosmological studies; jet physics associated with active galactic nuclei, gamma-ray bursts (GRBs), and microquasars; and particle acceleration in galactic tevatrons and pevatrons. Today, extremely sensitive instruments operate in the high energy (AGILE and FERMI in the range 100 MegaelectronVolt (MeV) - 100 GigaelectronVolt (GeV)) and very high energy (VHE) (HAWC, HESS, MAGIC, VERITAS at energies greater than 100 GeV;) regimes simultaneously. Among the most exciting results from VERITAS are the detection of emission from the Crab Pulsar above 100 GeV (requiring the presence of a new emission component), the discovery of gamma-ray emission from a starburst galaxy, M82 (firmly associating cosmic-ray acceleration with star-forming regions), and the detection of correlated variability in the radio and Teraelectronvolt (TeV) regimes in radio galaxies (helping to constrain the emission to be originating within the jet collimation region). The upper limit on the gamma-ray emission from the Segue 1 dwarf galaxy set by VERITAS rules out most of the leptophilic dark matter parameter space favored by recent cosmic-ray positron measurements. A major upgrade to the VERITAS cameras during summer 2012 introduced high-quantum-efficiency photo multiplier tubes to lower the energy threshold of the array by 30%, and the array will be further augmented by the arrival in 2015 of a prototype 10 meter class Schwarzschild-Couder telescope under development for the Cherenkov Telescope Array (CTA). Following the recent VERITAS hardware upgrade, great promise for further improving the science potential of the instrument comes from a focus on data analysis. This CAREER award provides support for developing major improvements in VERITAS data analysis methods aimed at lowering the analysis threshold, improving angular and energy resolution, and increasing background discrimination. It will also support analysis of VERITAS data to search for dark matter signals from the Galactic Halo, Fermi unassociated sources, and related targets, as well as studies of Galactic accelerators of cosmic rays. Broader impacts: The science of VERITAS and CTA - searching for dark matter and investigating the most powerful cosmic accelerators - has broad applications to both astro- and particle physics, and addresses questions that can capture the public's imagination. Group members will share that excitement via public lectures at area high schools and to groups in the local Morningside Heights and Harlem areas of Manhattan and Westchester County, and by engaging undergraduates and area high school students in the group's research activities. As a centerpiece to tie together these outreach activities, the group plans to develop a Visitor Center at Nevis Labs that will occupy both physical and virtual spaces and provide a focal point for visiting groups to learn about the history and current research at Nevis.

伽马射线天文学影响了广泛的关键科学问题：间接暗物质探测和基本物理定律的测试;宇宙学研究;与活动星系核，伽马射线暴（GRB）和微类星体相关的喷流物理学;以及银河系Tevatron和Pevatron的粒子加速。今天，极其灵敏的仪器同时在高能（100兆电子伏（MeV）- 100千兆电子伏（GeV）范围内的AGILE和FERMI）和甚高能（VHE）（能量大于100 GeV的HAWC、HESS、MAGIC、VERITAS）区域工作。VERITAS最令人兴奋的结果之一是探测到蟹状星云脉冲星超过100 GeV的辐射（需要一个新的发射成分的存在），发现伽马射线发射从一个星爆星系，M82（将宇宙射线加速与恒星形成区紧密联系起来），以及射电星系中射电和太电子伏特（TeV）体系中相关变化的探测（有助于将发射限制在射流准直区域内）。VERITAS设定的Segue 1矮星系伽马射线发射的上限排除了最近宇宙射线正电子测量所青睐的大部分轻子暗物质参数空间。2012年夏季对VERITAS相机进行了重大升级，引入了高量子效率的光电倍增管，将阵列的能量阈值降低了30%，2015年将为切伦科夫望远镜阵列（CTA）开发的10米级原型施瓦兹希尔德-库德望远镜的到来将进一步增强阵列。在最近的VERITAS硬件升级之后，进一步提高仪器科学潜力的巨大希望来自于对数据分析的关注。该CAREER奖项为VERITAS数据分析方法的重大改进提供支持，旨在降低分析阈值，提高角度和能量分辨率，并增加背景识别。它还将支持VERITAS数据的分析，以搜索来自银河系晕，费米非关联源和相关目标的暗物质信号，以及宇宙射线的银河系加速器的研究。更广泛的影响：VERITAS和CTA的科学-寻找暗物质和调查最强大的宇宙加速器-在天文和粒子物理学方面都有广泛的应用，并解决了可以抓住公众想象力的问题。小组成员将通过在地区高中的公开讲座以及在当地晨边高地和曼哈顿和韦斯特切斯特县的哈莱姆地区的小组，以及通过让本科生和地区高中生参与小组的研究活动，来分享这种兴奋。作为将这些外展活动联系在一起的核心，该小组计划在尼维斯实验室建立一个游客中心，该中心将占据物理和虚拟空间，并为访问团体提供一个焦点，以了解尼维斯的历史和当前研究。