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Opis: The Pierre Auger Observatory, the world’s largest cosmic ray detector, plays a pivotal role in exploring the frontiers of physics beyond the standard model of particle physics. By the observation of ultra-high energy cosmic rays, Auger provides critical insights into two major scenarios: super heavy dark matter and Lorentz invariance violation. Super heavy dark matter, hypothesized to originate in the early universe, offers a compelling explanation for the dark matter problem and is constrained by Auger through searches for photons and neutrinos resulting from its decay. Lorentz invariance violations, motivated by quantum gravity theories implying deviations from fundamental symmetries, are probed by Auger through alterations of the particle dispersion relation and the energy thresholds of their interactions with astrophysical photons backgrounds.
Ključne besede: ultra-high-energy cosmic rays, Pierre Auger Observatory, UHE neutrinos, UHE photons
Objavljeno v RUNG: 24.03.2025; Ogledov: 388; Prenosov: 4
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Opis: The Pierre Auger Observatory is the most sensitive instrument to detect photons with energies above 1⁢0[sup]17  eV. It measures extensive air showers generated by ultrahigh energy cosmic rays using a hybrid technique that exploits the combination of a fluorescence detector with a ground array of particle detectors. The signatures of a photon-induced air shower are a larger atmospheric depth of the shower maximum (�max) and a steeper lateral distribution function, along with a lower number of muons with respect to the bulk of hadron-induced cascades. In this work, a new analysis technique in the energy interval between 1 and 30 EeV (1  EeV=1⁢0[sup]18  eV) has been developed by combining the fluorescence detector-based measurement of �max with the specific features of the surface detector signal through a parameter related to the air shower muon content, derived from the universality of the air shower development. No evidence of a statistically significant signal due to photon primaries was found using data collected in about 12 years of operation. Thus, upper bounds to the integral photon flux have been set using a detailed calculation of the detector exposure, in combination with a data-driven background estimation. The derived 95% confidence level upper limits are 0.0403, 0.01113, 0.0035, 0.0023, and 0.0021  km[sup]−2 sr[sup]−1 yr[sup]−1 above 1, 2, 3, 5, and 10 EeV, respectively, leading to the most stringent upper limits on the photon flux in the EeV range. Compared with past results, the upper limits were improved by about 40% for the lowest energy threshold and by a factor 3 above 3 EeV, where no candidates were found and the expected background is negligible. The presented limits can be used to probe the assumptions on chemical composition of ultrahigh energy cosmic rays and allow for the constraint of the mass and lifetime phase space of super-heavy dark matter particles.
Ključne besede: ultra-high-energy photons, ultra-high-energy cosmic rays, Pierre Auger Observatory, extensive air showers
Objavljeno v RUNG: 30.09.2024; Ogledov: 1475; Prenosov: 3
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Opis: The Pierre Auger Observatory, located in western Argentina, is the world's largest cosmic-ray observatory. While it was originally built to study the cosmic-ray flux above 10^18.5 eV, several enhancements have reduced this energy threshold. One such enhancement is a surface array composed of a triangular grid of 19 water-Cherenkov detectors separated by 433 m (SD-433) to explore the energies down to about 10^16 eV. We are developing two research lines employing the SD-433. Firstly, we will measure the energy spectrum in a region where previous experiments have shown evidence of the second knee. Secondly, we will search for ultra-high energy photons to study PeV cosmic-ray sources residing in the Galactic center. In this work, we introduce the SD-433 and we show that it is fully efficient above 5×10^16 eV for hadronic primaries with θ<45∘. Using seven years of data, we present the parametrization of the lateral distribution function of measured signals. Finally, we show that an angular resolution of 1.8∘ (0.5∘) can be attained at the lowest (highest) primary energies. Our study lays the goundmark for measurements in the energy range above 10^16 eV by utilizing the SD-433 and thus expanding the scientific output of the Auger surface detector.
Ključne besede: Pierre Auger Observatory, SD-433, indirect detection, surface detection, low energy extension, ultra-high energy, cosmic rays, energy spectrum, photons, multimessenger
Objavljeno v RUNG: 04.10.2023; Ogledov: 2397; Prenosov: 6
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Opis: The Pierre Auger Observatory is the most sensitive detector to primary photons with energies above ∼ 0.2 EeV. It measures extensive air showers using a hybrid technique that combines a fluorescence detector (FD) with a ground array of particle detectors (SD). The signatures of a photon-induced air shower are a larger atmospheric depth at the shower maximum (Xmax) and a steeper lateral distribution function, along with a lower number of muons with respect to the bulk of hadron-induced background. Using observables measured by the FD and SD, three photon searches in different energy bands are performed. In particular, between threshold energies of 1–10 EeV, a new analysis technique has been developed by combining the FD-based measurement of Xmax with the SD signal through a parameter related to its muon content, derived from the universality of the air showers. This technique has led to a better photon/hadron separation and, consequently, to a higher search sensitivity, resulting in a tighter upper limit than before. The outcome of this new analysis is presented here, along with previous results in the energy ranges below 1 EeV and above 10 EeV. From the data collected by the Pierre Auger Observatory in about 15 years of operation, the most stringent constraints on the fraction of photons in the cosmic flux are set over almost three decades in energy.
Ključne besede: Pierre Auger Observatory, indirect detection, fluorescence detection, surface array, hybrid detection, ultra-high energy, cosmic rays, photons
Objavljeno v RUNG: 29.09.2023; Ogledov: 2194; Prenosov: 6
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Opis: Multimessenger astronomy has become increasingly important during the past decade. Some astronomical objects have already been successfully observed in the light of multiple messenger signals, allowing for a much deeper understanding of their physical properties. The Pierre Auger Observatory has taken part in multimessenger astronomy with an exhaustive exploration of the ultra-high-energy sky. In this contribution, for the first time, a search for UHE photons from the sources of gravitational waves is presented. Interactions with the cosmic background radiation fields are expected to attenuate any possible flux of ultra-high-energy photons from distant sources and a non-negligible background of air shower events with hadronic origin makes an unambiguous identification of primary photons a challenging task. In the analysis presented here, a selection strategy is applied to both GW sources and air shower events aiming to provide maximum sensitivity to a possible photon signal. At the same time, a window is kept open for hypothetical new-physics processes, which might allow for much larger interaction lengths of photons in the extragalactic medium. Preliminary results on the UHE photon fluence from a selection of GW sources, including the binary neutron star merger GW170817 are presented.
Ključne besede: Pierre Auger Observatory, indirect detection, fluorescence detection, ultra-high energy, photons, cosmic rays, anisotropy, gravitational waves, multimessenger
Objavljeno v RUNG: 29.09.2023; Ogledov: 2148; Prenosov: 7
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