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arXiv · 1212.6237

NICHE: The Non-Imaging CHErenkov Array

Douglas Bergman·John Krizmanic
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Abstract

The accurate measurement of the Cosmic Ray (CR) nuclear composition around and above the Knee (~ 10^15.5 eV) has been difficult due to uncertainties inherent to the measurement techniques and/or dependence on hadronic Monte Carlo simulation models required to interpret the data. Measurement of the Cherenkov air shower signal, calibrated with air fluorescence measurements, offers a methodology to provide an accurate measurement of the nuclear composition evolution over a large energy range. NICHE will use an array of widely-spaced, non-imaging Cherenkov counters to measure the amplitude and time-spread of the air shower Cherenkov signal to extract CR nuclear composition measurements and to cross-calibrate the Cherenkov energy and composition measurements with TA/TALE fluorescence and surface detector measurements.

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Douglas Bergman, John Krizmanic. 2012-12-26. NICHE: The Non-Imaging CHErenkov Array. https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4792585

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