ANITA: First flight overview and detector performance
Proceedings of the 30th International Cosmic Ray Conference, ICRC 2007 5:HE PART 2 (2007) 1441-1444
Abstract:
The ANtarctic Impulsive Transient Antenna (ANITA) searches for ultra high energy neutrinos interacting in the Antarctic ice cap. It is a long duration balloon experiment composed of an array of broadband dual-polarized horn antennas that had its first science flight over Antarctica in December 2006 through January 2007. ANITA relies upon the Askaryan effect, in which a particle shower in a dense medium emits coherent Cherenkov radiation at radio wavelengths, for the detection of a neutrino induced shower. ANITA is designed to detect-or constrain flux models of-ultra high energy neutrinos created by the interaction of ultra high energy cosmic rays with the cosmic microwave background. In this paper we discuss the detector performance during the first ANITA flight.Energy resolution and calibration of the ANITA detector
Proceedings of the 30th International Cosmic Ray Conference, ICRC 2007 5:HE PART 2 (2007) 1469-1472
Abstract:
The balloon-borne ANITA neutrino telescope successfully launched from McMurdo Station, Antarctica during the 2006-2007 austral summer. In this paper we present ongoing studies of the energy resolution and system response of the ANITA detector, which provide an excellent test bed for validating the ANITA Monte Carlo and will be of great interest if ANITA discovers signal events. While in view of the launch site ANITA received calibration pulses from two antennas, located on the surface and in a borehole in the Ross Ice Shelf, which facilitate these studies.Identification of neutrino flavor in the ANITA experiment
Proceedings of the 30th International Cosmic Ray Conference, ICRC 2007 5:HE PART 2 (2007) 1523-1526
Abstract:
The ANITA (Antarctic Impulsive Transient Antenna) experiment may be the first experiment to identify astrophysical neutrinos of energy greater than 1018 eV. A Monte Carlo simulation has been developed to determine the sensitivity and improve the event reconstruction capabilities of ANITA at energies up to 1021 eV. Charged leptons created in charged current neutrino-nucleon interactions can produce secondary showers when they experience hard energy losses through bremsstrahlung, pair production, and photonuclear interactions as they propagate through the ice. Because the cross sections of these interactions depend on the flavor and energy of the charged lepton, the distribution of the showers can indicate the flavor and energy of the neutrino. Results from the simulation are presented.Measuring the askaryan effect in ice with the ANITA instrument
Proceedings of the 30th International Cosmic Ray Conference, ICRC 2007 5:HE PART 2 (2007) 1573-1576
Abstract:
Most ultra-high energy neutrino experiments using ice as a target medium rely on the Askaryan effect (coherent impulsive radio Cherenkov radiation from the charge asymmetry in an electromagnetic shower). This effect was measured with the Antarctic Impulsive Transient Antenna (ANITA) experiment at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center (SLAC) in June 2006. The showers were produced by 28.5 GeV electrons with a number density of 109 electrons per bunch impacting a 7.5 metric ton ice target (roughly 12.5 radiation lengths). In this paper we present the measured angular and frequency dependence of the radiation and compare the results with the predicted response.Radiofrequency ice properties measurements at Taylor Dome, Antarctica, in support of the ANITA experiment
Proceedings of the 30th International Cosmic Ray Conference, ICRC 2007 3:OG PART 2 (2007) 1241-1244