skip to main content
OSTI.GOV title logo U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Title: Prototype muon detectors for the AMIGA component of the Pierre Auger Observatory

Journal Article · · Journal of Instrumentation
 [1]
  1. Univ. Siegen, Siegen (Germany). et al.

AMIGA (Auger Muons and Infill for the Ground Array) is an upgrade of the Pierre Auger Observatory to extend its range of detection and to directly measure the muon content of the particle showers. It consists of an infill of surface water-Cherenkov detectors accompanied by buried scintillator detectors used for muon counting. The main objectives of the AMIGA engineering array, referred to as the Unitary Cell, are to identify and resolve all engineering issues as well as to understand the muon-number counting uncertainties related to the design of the detector. The mechanical design, fabrication and deployment processes of the muon counters of the Unitary Cell are described in this document. These muon counters modules comprise sealed PVC casings containing plastic scintillation bars, wavelength-shifter optical fibers, 64 pixel photomultiplier tubes, and acquisition electronics. The modules are buried approximately 2.25 m below ground level in order to minimize contamination from electromagnetic shower particles. The mechanical setup, which allows access to the electronics for maintenance, is also described in addition to tests of the modules' response and integrity. As a result, the completed Unitary Cell has measured a number of air showers of which a first analysis of a sample event is included here.

Research Organization:
Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (FNAL), Batavia, IL (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC), High Energy Physics (HEP)
Contributing Organization:
The Pierre Auger Collaboration
Grant/Contract Number:
AC02-07CH11359
OSTI ID:
1252986
Report Number(s):
FERMILAB-PUB-16-164-AD-AE-CD-TD; arXiv:1605.01625; 1422718
Journal Information:
Journal of Instrumentation, Vol. 11, Issue 02; ISSN 1748-0221
Publisher:
Institute of Physics (IOP)Copyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 25 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

References (11)

The Pierre Auger Cosmic Ray Observatory journal July 2015
Radio detection of high-energy cosmic rays with the Auger Engineering Radio Array journal July 2016
Underground muon counters as a tool for composition analyses journal July 2008
Institute of High Energy Physics--Chinese Academy of Sciences [Website] journal
Extruding plastic scintillator at Fermilab conference January 2003
The magnetized steel and scintillator calorimeters of the MINOS experiment
  • Michael, D. G.; Adamson, P.; Alexopoulos, T.
  • Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section A: Accelerators, Spectrometers, Detectors and Associated Equipment, Vol. 596, Issue 2 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nima.2008.08.003
journal November 2008
A new method for reconstructing the muon lateral distribution with an array of segmented counters journal May 2015
Analog multiplexer for testing multianode photomultipliers used in AMIGA project of the Pierre Auger Observatory journal September 2015
AMIGA at the Auger Observatory: the scintillator module testing system journal June 2011
The OPERA experiment Target Tracker
  • Adam, T.; Baussan, E.; Borer, K.
  • Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section A: Accelerators, Spectrometers, Detectors and Associated Equipment, Vol. 577, Issue 3 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nima.2007.04.147
journal July 2007
Digital electronics for the Pierre Auger Observatory AMIGA muon counters journal April 2014

Cited By (8)

Muon counting using silicon photomultipliers in the AMIGA detector of the Pierre Auger observatory journal March 2017
Enhancing the cosmic-ray mass sensitivity of air-shower arrays by combining radio and muon detectors journal April 2019
Multi-Messenger Physics With the Pierre Auger Observatory text January 2019
Muon counting using silicon photomultipliers in the AMIGA detector of the Pierre Auger observatory text January 2017
Enhancing the cosmic-ray mass sensitivity of air-shower arrays by combining radio and muon detectors text January 2019
Multi-Messenger Physics With the Pierre Auger Observatory journal April 2019
Muon Counting using Silicon Photomultipliers in the AMIGA detector of the Pierre Auger Observatory text January 2017
Enhancing the cosmic-ray mass sensitivity of air-shower arrays by combining radio and muon detectors text January 2019