Development of Hexagonal Radio Array for the ARIANNA Ultra-High Energy Neutrino Detector

Arianna超高能中微子项目的主要目的是每年从GZK机制观测大约40个宇宙中微子-河外超高能质子与宇宙微波背景光子碰撞，产生最终衰变为中微子的介子-以足够的精度确定它们的能谱和相互作用性质。宇宙源中微子的能谱为了解宇宙射线的产生机制和源分布提供了重要的信息。Arianna依靠阿斯基恩效应在密集介质中产生的无线电脉冲的探测，并利用了麦克默多站附近罗斯冰架的几个特性：(1)冰对无线电频率的电磁辐射惊人地透明，(2)大陆架下方的水-冰边界就像一面镜子，可以反射来自任何向下方向的中微子的无线电信号，(3)在感兴趣的频带内，背景噪声水平相当适中。附近的明纳悬崖保护该地点免受明显的人为无线电噪音的影响。它靠近麦克默多车站，为后勤支持提供了许多合适的选择。这项奖励将为实现阿里安娜概念的下一步提供资金，称为六角形无线电子阵：在阿里安娜站点建造、部署和启用由7个自主探测器站组成的六边形排列，以评估大规模可行性、系统稳健性和较长时间内的环境噪声环境。这些测试将为优化Arianna A阶段组件的最终设计提供投入，该组件由12 x 12个站阵列组成，该项目的更广泛影响是学生好奇心和想象力驱动的研究的出口，他们将有机会学习数据采集电子学、探测器模拟和数据处理。

The primary purpose of the ARIANNA Ultra-High Energy (UHE) Neutrino project is to observe about 40 cosmogenic neutrinos per year from the GZK mechanism - extragalactic UHE protons collide with cosmic microwave background photons, producing pions that eventually decay to neutrinos - with sufficient precision to determine their energy spectrum and interaction properties. The energy spectrum of cosmogenic neutrinos provides important insight on the production mechanism and source distribution of cosmic rays. ARIANNA relies on the detection of radio pulses generated in dense media by the Askaryan effect and capitalizes on several properties of the Ross Ice Shelf near McMurdo Station, the hub of US operations: (1) the ice is impressively transparent to electromagnetic radiation at radio frequencies, (2) the water-ice boundary below the shelf behaves like a good mirror to reflect radio signals from neutrinos in any downward direction and (3) background noise levels are quite modest in the frequency band of interest. Nearby Minna Bluff protects the site from significant anthropogenic radio noise. Its close proximity to McMurdo Station provides a number of suitable options for logistical support. This award will fund the next step toward the realization of the ARIANNA concept, called the Hexagonal Radio Sub-array: to construct, deploy and commission a hexagonal arrangement of 7 autonomous detector stations at the ARIANNA site to assess large-scale feasibility, system robustness and the ambient noise environment over an extended period of time. These tests will provide input to optimize the final design of the Phase A component of ARIANNA, which consists of a 12 x 12 array of stations Among the broader impacts of this project are an outlet for curiosity and imagination driven research by students who will be given the opportunity to learn about data acquisition electronics, detector simulation, and data processing.