High Energy Hadronic Interactions and the Puzzles of the Cosmic Radiation

高能天体物理学的进展通常需要对各种高能反应中的粒子产生过程有更好的了解。在该项目的框架内，处理强子相互作用各方面的新理论方法将应用于高能天体物理学的挑战性问题，这些问题与超高能宇宙射线（uhecr）的研究、高能中微子通量的测量和地外反核通量的探测有关。特别是，计划根据巨型风淋室阵列的实验数据分析UHECR的核组成，并利用新的qgsjt - iii强子相互作用蒙特卡罗发生器区分UHECR起源的各种模型，并严格评估模型预测的不确定性。第二个研究目标是用一种描述质子内在魅力含量的新方法计算大气中微子背景，包括提示中微子的贡献。根据冰立方天文台的数据，获得的结果将用于更精确地确定天体物理中微子通量，特别是在与观测到的中微子光谱截止相对应的物理上最有趣的PeV能量范围内。该项目的第三个主要目标是获得宇宙射线与星际介质相互作用和其他天体物理源产生的反核通量的最大约束预测。

Progress in high energy astrophysics usually requires an improved understanding of particle production processes in various high energy reactions. In the framework of the project, novel theoretical approaches to the treatment of various aspects of hadronic interactions will be applied to challenging problems of high energy astrophysics, related to investigations of ultra-high energy cosmic rays (UHECRs), measurements of high energy neutrino fluxes, and a detection of extraterrestrial fluxes of antinuclei. In particular, it is planned to analyze the nuclear composition of UHECRs, based on experimental data of giant air shower arrays, and to discriminate thereby between various models for the UHECR origin, using the new QGSJET-III Monte Carlo generator of hadronic interactions and critically assessing the uncertainties of the model predictions. The second research goal is to calculate the atmospheric neutrino background, including the prompt neutrino contribution, using a new approach for the description of the intrinsic charm content of the proton. The obtained results will be applied for a more precise determination of the astrophysical neutrino flux, based on the data of the IceCube observatory, notably, in the most physically interesting PeV energy range corresponding to the cutoff of the observed neutrino spectrum. The third major goal of the project is to obtain maximally constrained predictions for the fluxes of antinuclei from cosmic ray interactions with the interstellar medium and from other astrophysical sources.