arXiv subjects

Jiri Blazek

Publications and source records attributed to Jiri Blazek.

8 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2024

Modified Characteristics of Hadronic Interactions in Ultra-high-energy Cosmic-ray Showers

Data from multiple experiments suggest that the current interaction models used in Monte Carlo simulations do not correctly reproduce the hadronic interactions in air showers produced by ultra-high-energy cosmic rays (UHECR), in particular - but not limited to - the production of muons during the showers. We have created a large library of UHECR simulations where the interactions at the highest energies are slightly modified in various ways - but always within the constraints of the accelerator data, without any abrupt changes with energy and without assuming any specific mechanism or dramatically new physics at the ultra-high energies. We find that even when very different properties - cross-section, elasticity and multiplicity - of the interactions are modified, the resulting changes in some air-shower observables are still mutually correlated. Thus not all possible combinations of changes of observables are easily reproduced by some combination of the modifications. Most prominently, the recent results of the Pierre Auger Observatory, which call for a change in the prediction of both the muon content at ground and the depth of the maximum of longitudinal development of the showers, are rather difficult to reproduce with such modifications, in particular when taking into account other cosmic-ray data. While some of these results are related to the assumptions we place on the modifications, the overall lessons are general and provide valuable insight into how the UHECR data can be interpreted from the point of view of hadronic physics.

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arXiv2024

Chasing Gravitational Waves with the Cherenkov Telescope Array

The detection of gravitational waves from a binary neutron star merger by Advanced LIGO and Advanced Virgo (GW170817), along with the discovery of the electromagnetic counterparts of this gravitational wave event, ushered in a new era of multimessenger astronomy, providing the first direct evidence that BNS mergers are progenitors of short gamma-ray bursts (GRBs). Such events may also produce very-high-energy (VHE, > 100GeV) photons which have yet to be detected in coincidence with a gravitational wave signal. The Cherenkov Telescope Array (CTA) is a next-generation VHE observatory which aims to be indispensable in this search, with an unparalleled sensitivity and ability to slew anywhere on the sky within a few tens of seconds. New observing modes and follow-up strategies are being developed for CTA to rapidly cover localization areas of gravitational wave events that are typically larger than the CTA field of view. This work will evaluate and provide estimations on the expected number of of gravitational wave events that will be observable with CTA, considering both on- and off-axis emission. In addition, we will present and discuss the prospects of potential follow-up strategies with CTA.

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arXiv2023

A Study of Modified Characteristics of Hadronic Interactions

We have implemented ad-hoc modifications to the CORSIKA Monte-Carlo generator which allow us to simultaneously adjust the multiplicity, elasticity and cross-section of hadronic interactions with respect to the predictions of the Sibyll 2.3d interaction model, in order to assess whether a reasonable combination of changes (that is not excluded by current experimental data) could alleviate the observed tension between the model predictions and observed features of extensive air showers induced by ultra-high energy cosmic rays (UHECR). Previously, we have studied the effects of such changes on proton-initiated showers. Because a multitude of experimental data suggest that the primary composition of the UHECR is mixed, we have expanded the modification procedure to include nuclear projectiles in a consistent way based on the superposition model, in a similar manner as was used in the previous studies carried out using one-dimensional simulation methods. As we are using a fully three-dimensional approach, we can quantify the effects of the changes on both longitudinal and lateral features of the showers. With the inclusion of nuclear projectiles, we can study the impact of the changes on observable quantities for realistic primary beams as well as on the determination of the primary composition from data under the assumption of the modified hadronic interactions.

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arXiv2019

Calibration and operation of SiPM-based cameras for gamma-ray astronomy in presence of high night-sky light

The next generation of Cherenkov telescope cameras feature Silicon Photo Multipliers (SiPM), which can guarantee excellent performance and allow for observation also under moonlight, increasing duty-cycle and therefore the physics reach. A 4 m-diameter Davies-Cotton prototype telescope with a 9-degree optical FoV and a 1296-pixel SiPM camera, has been designed to meet the requirements of the next generation of ground-based gamma-ray observatories at the highest energies. The large-scale production of the telescopes for array deployment has required the development of a fully automated calibration strategy which relies on a dedicated hardware, the Camera Test Setup (CTS). For each camera pixel, the CTS is equipped with two LEDs, one operated in pulsed mode to reproduce signal and one in continuous mode to reproduce night-sky background. In this contribution we will present the camera calibration strategy, from the laboratory measurement to the on-site monitoring with emphasis on the results obtained with the first camera prototype. In addition, key performances such as charge resolution, time resolution and trigger efficiencies and their degradation with increasing night-sky background level will be presented.

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arXiv2019

Monte Carlo study of a single SST-1M prototype for the Cherenkov Telescope Array

The SST-1M telescope was developed as a prototype of a Small-Size-Telescope for the Cherenkov Telescope Array observatory and it has been extensively tested in Krakow since 2017. In this contribution we present validation of the Monte Carlo model of the prototype and expected performance in Krakow conditions. We focus on gamma/hadron separation and mono reconstruction of energy and gamma photon arrival direction using Machine learning methods.

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arXiv2016

Measurement of the Radiation Energy in the Radio Signal of Extensive Air Showers as a Universal Estimator of Cosmic-Ray Energy

We measure the energy emitted by extensive air showers in the form of radio emission in the frequency range from 30 to 80 MHz. Exploiting the accurate energy scale of the Pierre Auger Observatory, we obtain a radiation energy of 15.8 \pm 0.7 (stat) \pm 6.7 (sys) MeV for cosmic rays with an energy of 1 EeV arriving perpendicularly to a geomagnetic field of 0.24 G, scaling quadratically with the cosmic-ray energy. A comparison with predictions from state-of-the-art first-principle calculations shows agreement with our measurement. The radiation energy provides direct access to the calorimetric energy in the electromagnetic cascade of extensive air showers. Comparison with our result thus allows the direct calibration of any cosmic-ray radio detector against the well-established energy scale of the Pierre Auger Observatory.

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arXiv2016

Energy Estimation of Cosmic Rays with the Engineering Radio Array of the Pierre Auger Observatory

The Auger Engineering Radio Array (AERA) is part of the Pierre Auger Observatory and is used to detect the radio emission of cosmic-ray air showers. These observations are compared to the data of the surface detector stations of the Observatory, which provide well-calibrated information on the cosmic-ray energies and arrival directions. The response of the radio stations in the 30 to 80 MHz regime has been thoroughly calibrated to enable the reconstruction of the incoming electric field. For the latter, the energy deposit per area is determined from the radio pulses at each observer position and is interpolated using a two-dimensional function that takes into account signal asymmetries due to interference between the geomagnetic and charge-excess emission components. The spatial integral over the signal distribution gives a direct measurement of the energy transferred from the primary cosmic ray into radio emission in the AERA frequency range. We measure 15.8 MeV of radiation energy for a 1 EeV air shower arriving perpendicularly to the geomagnetic field. This radiation energy -- corrected for geometrical effects -- is used as a cosmic-ray energy estimator. Performing an absolute energy calibration against the surface-detector information, we observe that this radio-energy estimator scales quadratically with the cosmic-ray energy as expected for coherent emission. We find an energy resolution of the radio reconstruction of 22% for the data set and 17% for a high-quality subset containing only events with at least five radio stations with signal.

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arXiv2015

Real-time atmospheric monitoring for the Cherenkov Telescope Array using a wide-field optical telescope

The Cherenkov Telescope Array (CTA) is the next generation of ground-based very high energy gamma-ray instruments and is planned to be built on two sites (one in each hemisphere) in the coming years, with full array operation foreseen to begin 2020. The goal of performing high precision gamma-ray energy measurements while maximizing the use of observation time demands detailed and fast information about atmospheric conditions. Besides LIDARs designed to monitor clouds and aerosol content of the atmosphere in the pointing direction of the CTA telescopes, we propose to use the "FRAM" (F(/Ph)otometric Robotic Atmospheric Monitor) device, which is a small robotic astronomical telescope with a large field of view and a sensitive CCD camera that together ensure precise atmospheric characterization over the complete field-of-view of the CTA. FRAM will use stellar photometry to measure atmospheric extinction across the field of view of the CTA without interfering with the observation (unlike laser-based methods). This allows FRAM to operate with high temporal resolution and provide both real-time data for on-the-fly scheduling decisions and an offline database for calibration and selection of scientific data. The fast robotic mount of the telescope supports quick observation of multiple fields when the array is split and even a check of the conditions in the directions of the upcoming observations is possible. The FRAM concept is built upon experience gained with a similar device operated at the Pierre Auger Observatory. A working prototype of FRAM proposed for CTA is being built in Prague for extensive testing before deployment on site; first results and experiences with this prototype are presented.

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