arXiv subjects

Dave Z. Besson

Publications and source records attributed to Dave Z. Besson.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

The Study of a Cosmic Ray Candidate Detected by the Askaryan Radio Array

Experiments designed to detect ultra-high energy (UHE) neutrinos using radio techniques are also capable of detecting the radio signals from cosmic-ray (CR) induced air showers. These CR signals are important both as a background and as a tool for calibrating the detector. The Askaryan Radio Array (ARA), a radio detector array, is designed to detect UHE neutrinos. The array currently comprises five independent stations, each instrumented with antennas deployed at depths of up to 200 meters within the ice at the South Pole. In this study, we focus on a candidate event recorded by ARA Station 2 (A2) that shows features consistent with a downward-going CR-induced air shower. This includes distinctive double-pulse signals in multiple channels, interpreted as geomagnetic and Askaryan radio emissions arriving at the antennas in sequence. To investigate this event, we use detailed simulations that combine a modern ice-impacting CR shower simulation framework, FAERIE, with a realistic detector simulation package, AraSim. We will present results for an optimization of the event topology, identified through simulated CR showers, comparing the vertex reconstruction of both the geomagnetic and Askaryan signals of the event, as well as the observed time delays between the two signals in each antenna.

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2022

TAROGE-M: Radio Antenna Array on Antarctic High Mountain for Detecting Near-Horizontal Ultra-High Energy Air Showers

TAROGE-M is a self-triggered radio antenna array atop the 2700 m high Mt. Melbourne in Antarctica, designed to detect impulsive geomagnetic emission from extensive air showers induced by ultra-high energy (UHE) particles beyond 0.1 EeV, including cosmic rays (CRs), Earth-skimming tau neutrinos, and particularly, the "ANITA anomalous events" (AAEs) from near and below the horizon, which origin remains uncertain and requires more experimental inputs for clarification. The detection concept of TAROGE-M takes advantage of a high altitude with synoptic view toward the horizon as an efficient signal collector, and the radio quietness as well as strong and near vertical geomagnetic field in Antarctica. This approach has a low energy threshold, high duty cycle, and is easy to extend for quickly enlarging statistics. Here we report experimental results from the first TAROGE-M station deployed in 2020, corresponding to $25.3$-days of livetime. The station consists of six receiving antennas operating at 180-450 MHz, and can reconstruct source directions with $\sim0.3^\circ$ angular resolution. To demonstrate its ability to detect UHE air showers, a search for CR signals in the data was conducted, resulting in seven identified events. These events have a mean reconstructed energy of $0.95_{-0.31}^{+0.46}$ EeV and zenith angles between $25^\circ-82^\circ$, with both distributions agreeing with simulations. The estimated CR flux is also consistent with results of other experiments. The TAROGE-M sensitivity to AAEs is approximated by the tau neutrino exposure with simulations, suggesting comparable sensitivity as ANITA's at $~1$ EeV energy with a few station-years of operation. These first results verified the station design and performance in a polar and high-altitude environment, and are promising for further discovery of tau neutrinos and AAEs after an extension in the near future.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2019

NuRadioMC: Simulating the radio emission of neutrinos from interaction to detector

NuRadioMC is a Monte Carlo framework designed to simulate ultra-high energy neutrino detectors that rely on the radio detection method. This method exploits the radio emission generated in the electromagnetic component of a particle shower following a neutrino interaction. NuRadioMC simulates everything from the neutrino interaction in a medium, the subsequent Askaryan radio emission, the propagation of the radio signal to the detector and finally the detector response. NuRadioMC is designed as a modern, modular Python-based framework, combining flexibility in detector design with user-friendliness. It includes a state-of-the-art event generator, an improved modelling of the radio emission, a revisited approach to signal propagation and increased flexibility and precision in the detector simulation. This paper focuses on the implemented physics processes and their implications for detector design. A variety of models and parameterizations for the radio emission of neutrino-induced showers are compared and reviewed. Comprehensive examples are used to discuss the capabilities of the code and different aspects of instrumental design decisions.

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2008

Polarization dependence of radiowave propagation through Antarctic ice

Using a bistatic radar system on the ice surface, we have studied radiofrequency reflections off internal layers in Antarctic ice at the South Pole. In our measurement, the total propagation time of ~ns-duration, vertically broadcast radio signals, as a function of polarization axis in the horizontal plane, provides a direct probe of the geometry-dependence of the ice permittivity to depths of 1--2 km. Previous studies in East Antarctica have interpreted the measured azimuthal dependence of reflected signals as evidence for birefringent-induced interference effects, which are proposed to result from preferred alignment of the crystal orientation fabric (COF) axis. To the extent that COF alignment results from the bulk flow of ice across the Antarctic continent, we would expect a measurable birefringent asymmetry at South Pole, as well. Although we also observe clear dependence of reflected amplitude on polarization angle in our measurements, we do not observe direct evidence for birefringent-induced time-delay effects at the level of 0.1 parts per mille.

astro-ph↗