The discovery of Cherenkov radiation and its use in the detection of extensive air showers

Watson, A. A.

doi:10.1016/j.nuclphysbps.2011.03.003

Cited by 18 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 24 publications

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“…Another detection method that is based on observing the results of particle-matter interaction relies on the detection of the Cherenkov light -an electromagnetic shock wave from the charged particle passing the transparent medium (water, air, glass, plastic) faster than the speed of light inside that medium (read more on Cherenkov radiation in [165]). The shock wave consists of thousands of photons per 1 cm of particle path in the medium that can be detected using fast photodetectors with internal signal amplification, such as PMT (Photo Multiplier Tube).…”

Section: Water-based Cherenkov Detectormentioning

confidence: 99%

Cosmic-Ray Extremely Distributed Observatory

et al. 2020

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The Cosmic-Ray Extremely Distributed Observatory (CREDO) is a newly formed, global collaboration dedicated to observing and studying cosmic rays (CR) and cosmic-ray ensembles (CRE): groups of at least two CR with a common primary interaction vertex or the same parent particle. The CREDO program embraces testing known CR and CRE scenarios, and preparing to observe unexpected physics, it is also suitable for multi-messenger and multi-mission applications. Perfectly matched to CREDO capabilities, CRE could be formed both within classical models (e.g., as products of photon–photon interactions), and exotic scenarios (e.g., as results of decay of Super-Heavy Dark Matter particles). Their fronts might be significantly extended in space and time, and they might include cosmic rays of energies spanning the whole cosmic-ray energy spectrum, with a footprint composed of at least two extensive air showers with correlated arrival directions and arrival times. As the CRE are predominantly expected to be spread over large areas and, due to the expected wide energy range of the contributing particles, such a CRE detection might only be feasible when using all available cosmic-ray infrastructure collectively, i.e., as a globally extended network of detectors. Thus, with this review article, the CREDO Collaboration invites the astroparticle physics community to actively join or to contribute to the research dedicated to CRE and, in particular, to pool together cosmic-ray data to support specific CRE detection strategies.

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Section: Water-based Cherenkov Detectormentioning

confidence: 99%

Cosmic-Ray Extremely Distributed Observatory

et al. 2020

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“…Such is the case for Cherenkov radiation (CR): the emission of light by free charged particles moving faster than the phase velocity of light in a medium 5 . Since its discovery in 1934, a longstanding hallmark of CR is its manifestation as a 'shockwave' of light 1,[6][7][8][9][10][11][12] , resulting from the coherent temporal interference of radiation at a wide spectral range. Despite the wide applicability of this effect, no experiment has ever directly observed the shockwave dynamics emitted by a single particle.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The coherence of light is fundamentally tied to the quantum coherence of the emitting particle

et al. 2021

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Coherent emission of light by free charged particles is believed to be successfully captured by classical electromagnetism in all experimental settings. However, recent advances triggered fundamental questions regarding the role of the particle wave function in these processes. Here, we find that even in seemingly classical experimental regimes, light emission is fundamentally tied to the quantum coherence and correlations of the emitting particle. We use quantum electrodynamics to show how the particle’s momentum uncertainty determines the optical coherence of the emitted light. We find that the temporal duration of Cherenkov radiation, envisioned for almost a century as a shock wave of light, is limited by underlying entanglement between the particle and light. Our findings enable new capabilities in electron microscopy for measuring quantum correlations of shaped electrons. Last, we propose new Cherenkov detection schemes, whereby measuring spectral photon autocorrelations can unveil the wave function structure of any charged high-energy particle.

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“…Some ground-based experiments determine the energy of primary GCRs using Extensive Air Shower (EAS) arrays or Cherenkov radiation, but, as these modern astroparticle physics experiments are usually designed to detect only the highest-energy particles, they are unsuitable for routine monitoring of atmospheric ionisation (e.g. Abraham and the Pierre Auger Observatory Collaboration, 2004;Watson, 2011). The cosmogenic isotope 10 Be is produced in the stratosphere and upper troposphere from the bombardment and breakdown (spallation), of N 2 and O 2 nuclei by GCR neutrons; inferring past 10 Be generation through assaying its abundance in polar ice sheets provides an indirect (proxy) method for monitoring the long term GCR flux (Lal and Peters, 1967;Beer, 2000).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Vertical profile measurements of lower troposphere ionisation

Harrison

Nicoll

Aplin

2014

Journal of Atmospheric and Solar-Terrestrial Physics

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a b s t r a c tVertical soundings of the atmospheric ion production rate have been obtained from Geiger counters integrated with conventional meteorological radiosondes. In launches made from Reading (UK) during 2013-2014, the Regener-Pfotzer ionisation maximum was at an altitude equivalent to a pressure of (63.1 7 2.4) hPa, or, expressed in terms of the local air density, (0.1017 0.005) kg m À 3 . The measured ionisation profiles have been evaluated against the Usoskin-Kovaltsov model and, separately, surface neutron monitor data from Oulu. Model ionisation rates agree well with the observed cosmic ray ionisation below 20 km altitude. Above 10 km, the measured ionisation rates also correlate well with simultaneous neutron monitor data, although, consistently with previous work, measured variability at the ionisation maximum is greater than that found by the neutron monitor. However, in the lower atmosphere (below 5 km altitude), agreement between the measurements and simultaneous neutron monitor data is poor. For studies of transient lower atmosphere phenomena associated with cosmic ray ionisation, this indicates the need for in situ ionisation measurements and improved lower atmosphere parameterisations.

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The discovery of Cherenkov radiation and its use in the detection of extensive air showers

Cited by 18 publications

References 24 publications

Cosmic-Ray Extremely Distributed Observatory

Cosmic-Ray Extremely Distributed Observatory

The coherence of light is fundamentally tied to the quantum coherence of the emitting particle

Vertical profile measurements of lower troposphere ionisation

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