The Pierre Auger Research and Development Array (RDA) in southeastern Colorado – R&D for a giant ground array

Abstract

Abstract. The Pierre Auger Research and Development Array (RDA) was originally designed to be the precursor of the northern Auger observatory, a hybrid array of 4400 surface detector stations and 39 fluorescence telescopes deployed over 20,000 square kilometers. It is conceived as a test bed aiming at validating an improved and more cost-effective 1-PMT surface detector design and a new peer-to-peer communication system. The array of ten surface detector stations and ten communication-only stations is currently being deployed in southeastern Colorado and will be operated at least until late 2013. It is configured in such a way that it allows testing of a new peer-to-peer communication protocol, as well as a new surface detector electronics design with a larger dynamic range aiming at reducing the distance from the shower core where saturation is observed. All these developments are expected in the short term to improve the performance of the Pierre Auger Observatory and enable future enhancements. In the longer term, it is hoped that some of these new developments may contribute to the design of a next-generation giant ground array.

Initial results of a direct comparison between the Surface Detectors of the Pierre Auger Observatory and of the Telescope Array

“…The digitized signals are sent to a programmable logic device board used to make various triggering decisions. The Auger North SD station is a one PMT water Cherenkov surface detector used in the Pierre Auger Research and Development Array in Colorado, USA [11]. It is a cost-effective version of the Auger South SD station, with the same footprint, height and water volume.…”