Proposal to Develop Station Technology for the ARIANNA Ultra-High Energy Neutrino Detector

University Of California-Irvine, Irvine CA

Investigators

Abstract

This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5). The proposal seeks funding to continue investigations of remarkable properties of the Ross Ice Shelf near McMurdo Station, Antarctica, for the detection of neutrinos as they cause radio emission upon their rare collisions with the atomic nuclei in the ice. The ice sheet is impressively transparent to electromagnetic radiation at radio frequencies and the water-ice boundary below the shelf behaves like a good mirror to reflect radio signals from neutrino interactions in any downward direction. These properties were confirmed in recent studies of the at Moore?s Bay through the NSF's SGER award. Moreover, it was found that the background noise level at this site is quite modest in the frequency band of interest. Simulations show excellent energy and angular resolution if the full array of radio detectors will be built - because the events are typically contained within the ice beneath the surface stations. It is proposes to take the next logical step toward the realization of the ARIANNA array concept by designing, constructing, and deploying two autonomous detector stations at the site to assess the overall array large-scale feasibility, system robustness, and the ambient noise environment over an extended period of time. Each station consists of eight linearly polarized antennas residing just beneath the snow surface, oriented downwards and arranged in an octagon with ~6m diameter. Nearby Minna Bluff range protects the site from significant anthropogenic radio noise coming from McMurdo Station. At the same time, the site's close proximity to McMurdo provides a number of suitable options for logistical support. Continued reliance on students provides a broader impact of this proposed research and firmly grounds this effort in its educational mission.