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E Andrés, P Askebjer,
X Bai,
G Barouch,
S W Barwick,
R C Bay,
K H Becker,
L Bergström,
D Bertrand,
D Bierenbaum, [......],
M Vander Donckt,
C Walck,
C Weinheimer,
C H Wiebusch,
R Wischnewski,
H Wissing,
K Woschnagg,
W Wu,
G Yodh,
S Young
[show abstract]
[hide abstract]
ABSTRACT: Neutrinos are elementary particles that carry no electric charge and have little mass. As they interact only weakly with other particles, they can penetrate enormous amounts of matter, and therefore have the potential to directly convey astrophysical information from the edge of the Universe and from deep inside the most cataclysmic high-energy regions. The neutrino's great penetrating power, however, also makes this particle difficult to detect. Underground detectors have observed low-energy neutrinos from the Sun and a nearby supernova, as well as neutrinos generated in the Earth's atmosphere. But the very low fluxes of high-energy neutrinos from cosmic sources can be observed only by much larger, expandable detectors in, for example, deep water or ice. Here we report the detection of upwardly propagating atmospheric neutrinos by the ice-based Antarctic muon and neutrino detector array (AMANDA). These results establish a technology with which to build a kilometre-scale neutrino observatory necessary for astrophysical observations.
Nature 04/2001; 410(6827):441-3. · 36.28 Impact Factor
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[show abstract]
[hide abstract]
ABSTRACT: This paper briefly summarizes the search for astronomical sources of high-energy neutrinos using the AMANDA-B10 detector. The complete data set from 1997 was analyzed. For E_mu>10 TeV, the detector exceeds 10,000 m^2 in effective area between declinations of 25 and 90 degrees. Neutrinos generated in the atmosphere by cosmic ray interactions were used to verify the overall sensitivity of the detector. The absolute pointing accuracy and angular resolution has been confirmed by the analysis of coincident events between the SPASE air shower array and the AMANDA detector. Preliminary flux limits from point source candidates are presented. For declinations larger than +45 degrees, our results compare favorably to existing limits for sources in the Southern sky. We also present the current status of the searches for high energy neutrino emission from diffusely distributed sources, GRBs, and WIMPs from the center of the earth. Comment: 8 pages, 9 figures, submitted to Int. Conf. Neut. Phys. Astro. (Neutrino 2000)
09/2000;
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E. C. Andr'es,
Francis Halzen,
for the AMANDA Collaboration,
R C Bay,
Y. He,
D. Lowder,
P. Miocinovic,
P. B. Price,
M Solarz,
K Woschnagg, [......],
A Biron,
S. Hundertmark,
M. Leuthold,
P. Niessen,
C. Spiering,
O Streicher,
T Thon,
C. H. Wiebusch,
R. Wischnewski,
D. Nygren
[show abstract]
[hide abstract]
ABSTRACT: With an effective telescope area of order 10 4 m 2 , a threshold of 50 GeV and a pointing accuracy of 2.5 degrees, the AMANDA detector represents the first of a new generation of high energy neutrino telescopes, reaching a scale envisaged over 25 years ago. We describe its performance, focussing on the capability to detect halo dark matter particles via their annihilation into neutrinos. Talk presented at the 3rd International Symposium on Sources and Detection of Dark Matter in the Universe (DM 98), Santa Monica, California, Feb. 1998. 1 The Indirect Detection of Halo Dark Matter High energy neutrino telescopes are multi-purpose instruments; their science mission covers particle physics, astronomy and astrophysics, cosmology and cosmic ray physics. Their deployment creates new opportunities for glaciology and oceanography, possibly geology of the earth's core[1]. Astronomy with neutrinos does have definite advantages. They can reach us, essentially without attenuation in fl...
09/1998;
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P Askebjer,
S W Barwick,
L Bergström,
A Bouchta,
S Carius,
E Dalberg,
K Engel,
B Erlandsson,
A Goobar,
L Gray, [......],
H Rubinstein,
E Schneider,
C Spiering,
O Streicher,
Q Sun,
T Thon,
S Tilav,
R Wischnewski,
C Walck,
G B Yodh
[show abstract]
[hide abstract]
ABSTRACT: We discuss recent measurements of the wavelength-dependent absorption coefficients in deep South Pole ice. The method uses transit-time distributions of pulses from a variable-frequency laser sent between emitters and receivers embedded in the ice. At depths of 800-1000 m scattering is dominated by residual air bubbles, whereas absorption occurs both in ice itself and in insoluble impurities. The absorption coefficient increases approximately exponentially with wavelength in the measured interval 410-610 nm. At the shortest wavelength our value is approximately a factor 20 below previous values obtained for laboratory ice and lake ice; with increasing wavelength the discrepancy with previous measurements decreases. At ~415 to ~500 nm the experimental uncertainties are small enough for us to resolve an extrinsic contribution to absorption in ice: submicrometer dust particles contribute by an amount that increases with depth and corresponds well with the expected increase seen near the Last Glacial Maximum in Vostok and Dome C ice cores. The laser pulse method allows remote mapping of gross structure in dust concentration as a function of depth in glacial ice.
Applied Optics 07/1997; 36(18):4168-80. · 1.41 Impact Factor
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P O Hulth,
D M Lowder,
T Miller,
D Nygren,
P B Price,
A Richards,
S W Barwick,
P Mock,
R Porrata,
E Schneider, [......],
S Tilav,
H Heukenkamp,
S Hundertmark,
A Karle,
Th Mikolajski,
T Thon,
C Spiering,
O Streicher,
Ch Wiebusch,
R Wischnewski
[show abstract]
[hide abstract]
ABSTRACT: At the AMANDA South Pole site, four new holes were drilled to depths 2050 m to 2180 m and instrumented with 86 photomultipliers (PMTs) at depths 1520-2000 m. Of these PMTs 79 are working, with 4-ns timing resolution and noise rates 300 to 600 Hz. Various diagnostic devices were deployed and are working. An observed factor 60 increase in scattering length and a sharpening of the distribution of arrival times of laser pulses relative to measurements at 800-1000 m showed that bubbles are absent below 1500 m. Absorption lengths are 100 to 150 m at wavelengths in the blue and UV to 337 nm. Muon coincidences are seen between the SPASE air shower array and the AMANDA PMTs at 800-1000 m and 1500-1900 m. The muon track rate is 30 Hz for 8-fold triggers and 10 Hz for 10-fold triggers. The present array is the nucleus for a future expanded array.
01/1997;
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P Askebjer,
S W Barwick,
L Bergström,
A Bouchta,
S Carius,
A Coulthard,
K Engel,
B Erlandsson,
A Goobar,
L Gray, [......],
R Morse,
R Porrata,
P B Price,
A Richards,
H Rubinstein,
E Schneider,
Q Sun,
S Tilav,
C Walck,
G Yodh
[show abstract]
[hide abstract]
ABSTRACT: The optical properties of the ice at the geographical South Pole have been investigated at depths between 0.8 and 1 kilometer. The absorption and scattering lengths of visible light ( approximately 515 nanometers) have been measured in situ with the use of the laser calibration setup of the Antarctic Muon and Neutrino Detector Array (AMANDA) neutrino detector. The ice is intrinsically extremely transparent. The measured absorption length is 59 +/- 3 meters, comparable with the quality of the ultrapure water used in the Irvine-Michigan-Brookhaven and Kamiokande proton-decay and neutrino experiments and more than twice as long as the best value reported for laboratory ice. Because of a residual density of air bubbles at these depths, the trajectories of photons in the medium are randomized. If the bubbles are assumed to be smooth and spherical, the average distance between collisions at a depth of 1 kilometer is about 25 centimeters. The measured inverse scattering length on bubbles decreases linearly with increasing depth in the volume of ice investigated.
Science 03/1995; 267(5201):1147-50. · 31.20 Impact Factor
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P. Askebjer,
S. W. Barwick, L. Bergström,
A. Bouchta,
S. Carius, A. Coulthard,
K. Engel,
B. Erlandsson,
A. Goobar, L. Gray,
A. Hallgren,
F. Halzen
Nuclear Physics B-proceedings Supplements - NUCL PHYS B-PROC SUPPL. 01/1995; 38(1):287-292.
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E. Andres, P. Askebjer,
X. Bai,
G. Barouch,
S.W. Barwick,
R.C. Bay,
K.-H. Becker,
L. Bergström,
D. Bertrand,
A. Biron, [......],
S. Tilav,
M. Vander Donckt,
C. Walck,
C. Weinheimer,
C.H. Wiebusch,
R. Wischnewski,
K. Woschnagg,
W. Wu,
G. Yodh,
S. Young
[show abstract]
[hide abstract]
ABSTRACT: This paper briefly summarizes the search for astronomical sources of high-energy neutrinos using the AMANDA-B10 detector. The complete data set from 1997 was analyzed. For Eμ > 10 TeV, the detector exceeds 10,000 m2 in effective area between declinations of 25 and 90 degrees. Neutrinos generated in the atmosphere by cosmic ray interactions were used to verify the overall sensitivity of the detector. The absolute pointing accuracy and angular resolution has been confirmed by the analysis of coincident events between the SPASE air shower array and the AMANDA detector. Preliminary flux limits from point source candidates are presented. For declinations larger than +45 degrees, our results compare favorably to existing limits for sources in the Southern sky. We also present the current status of the searches for high energy neutrino emission from diffusely distributed sources, GRBs, and WIMPs from the center of the earth.
Nuclear Physics B - Proceedings Supplements.
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E. Andres, P. Askebjer,
S.W. Barwick,
R. Bay,
L. Bergström,
A. Biron,
J. Booth,
A. Bouchta,
S. Carius,
M. Carlson, [......],
O. Streicher,
Q Sun,
L. Thollander,
T. Thon,
S. Tilav,
C. Walck,
C. Wiebusch,
R. Wischnewski,
K. Woschnagg,
G. Yodh
[show abstract]
[hide abstract]
ABSTRACT: AMANDA is a high-energy neutrino telescope presently under construction at the geographical South Pole. In the Antarctic summer 1995/96, an array of 80 optical modules (OMs) arranged on 4 strings (AMANDA-B4) was deployed at depths between 1.5 and 2 km. In this paper we describe the design and performance of the AMANDA-B4 prototype, based on data collected between February and November 1996. Monte Carlo simulations of the detector response to down-going atmospheric muon tracks show that the global behavior of the detector is understood. We describe the data analysis method and present first results on atmospheric muon reconstruction and separation of neutrino candidates. The AMANDA array was upgraded with 216 OMs on 6 new strings in 1996/97 (AMANDA-B10), and 122 additional OMs on 3 strings in 1997/98.
Astroparticle Physics.
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R.C. Bay,
Y. He,
D. Lowder,
P. Miocinovic,
P.B. Price,
M. Solarz,
K. Woschnagg,
S.W. Barwick,
J. Booth,
P.C. Mock, [......],
O. Streicher,
T. Thon,
C.H. Wiebusch,
R. Wischnewski,
D. Nygren,
A. Jones,
S. Hart,
D. Potter,
G. Hill,
R. Schwarz
[show abstract]
[hide abstract]
ABSTRACT: With an effective telescope area of order 104 m2, a threshold of ∼50 GeV and a pointing accuracy of 2.5°, the AMANDA detector represents the first of a new generation of high energy neutrino telescopes, reaching a scale envisaged over 25 years ago. We describe its performance, focussing on the capability to detect halo dark matter particles via their annihilation into neutrinos.
Physics Reports. 307:243-252.
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P. C. Mock, P. Askebjer,
S. W. Barwick,
L. Bergström,
A. Bouchta,
S. Carius,
B. Erlandsson,
A. Goobar,
L. Gray,
A. Hallgren, [......],
P. B. Price,
A. Richards,
H. Rubenstein,
C. Spiering,
Q. Sun,
T. Thon,
S. Tilav,
C. Walck,
R. Wischnewski,
G. Yodh
1:758.
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R. Wischnewski, P. Askebjer,
S. W. Barwick,
L. Bergström,
A. Bouchta,
S. Carius,
B. Erlandsson,
A. Goobar,
L. Gray,
A. Hallgren, [......],
R. Porrata,
P. B. Price,
A. Richards,
H. Rubenstein,
C. Spiering,
Q. Sun,
T. Thon,
S. Tilav,
C. Walck,
G. Yodh
1:658.
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T. C. Miller,
T. K. Gaisser,
S. Hart,
J. Lloyd-Evans,
D. Martello,
J. Petrakis,
T. Stanev,
A. A. Watson, P. Askebjer,
S. W. Barwick, [......],
P. B. Price,
A. Richards,
H Rubinstein,
E. Schneider,
C. Spiering,
Q. Sun,
S. Tilav,
C. Walck,
R. Wischnewski,
G. Yodh
2:768.
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L. Gray, P. Askebjer,
S. W. Barwick,
L. Bergström,
A. Bouchta,
S. Carius,
B. Erlandsson,
A. Goobar,
A. Hallgren,
F. Halzen, [......],
P. B. Price,
A. Richards,
H. Rubenstein,
C. Spiering,
Q. Sun,
S. Tilav,
T. Thon,
C. Walck,
R. Wishnewski,
G. Yodh
1:816.
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B. Erlandsson, P. Askebjer,
S. W. Barwick,
L. Bergström,
A. Bouchta,
S. Carius,
A. Goobar,
L. Gray,
A. Hallgren,
F. Halzen, [......],
P. B. Price,
A. Richards,
H. Rubinstein,
C. Spiering,
Q. Sun,
T. Thon,
S. Tilav,
C. Walck,
R. Wishnewski,
G. Yodh
1:1039.
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E. Andres, P. Askebjer,
X. Bai,
G. Barouch,
S. W. Barwick,
K.-H. Becker,
L. Bergstrom,
D. Bertrand,
D. Bierenbaum,
A. BironI,
J. Booth,
O. Botner
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P. B. Price, P. Askebjer,
S. W. Barwick,
L. Bergstrom,
A. Bouchta,
S. Carius,
B. Erlandsson,
A. Goobar,
L. Gray,
A. Hallgreen, [......],
R. Porrata,
A. Richards,
H. Rubenstein,
C. Spiering,
Q. Sun,
S. Tilav,
C. Walck,
A. J. Westphal,
R. Wischnewski,
G. Yodh
1:777.
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E. Andrés, P. Askebjer,
S.W. Barwick,
R. Bay,
L. Bergström,
A. Bouchta,
A. Biron,
S. Carius,
C. Costa,
D. Cowen, [......],
R. Schwarz,
C. Spiering,
O. Streicher,
T. Thon,
S. Tilav,
C. Walck,
C. Wiebusch,
R. Wischnewski,
K. Woschnagg,
G. Yodh
[show abstract]
[hide abstract]
ABSTRACT: The AMANDA high energy neutrino telescope has successfully been increased in size from four detector strings to ten detector springs during the 1996/1997 season. The first upward going muon-neutrino candidates have been reconstructed from the 1996 year's four-string data. Three new detector strings will be deployed during 1997/1998 to 2350 metres depth.
Nuclear Physics B - Proceedings Supplements.
