Speaker
Description
The IceCube-Gen2 experiment is a planned expansion of the current IceCube Observatory located beneath the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station. By increasing the instrumentation volume to approximately 8\text{km}^3 eight times that of the existing detector—and integrating an in-ice optical sensor array with a surface radio array, the project aims to enhance sensitivity in the high-energy regime by a factor of ten. This expansion is expected to identify sources of cosmic neutrinos and drive significant breakthroughs in multi-messenger astronomy.
In this study, we are developing the Fiber Optic Module (FOM), a light-collection device designed to increase the effective detection area of the Gen2-DOM (Digital Optical Module), which detects Cherenkov light generated in the ice. The FOM consists primarily of scintillating fibers that convert incident Cherenkov light into scintillation light and guide it to the Gen2-DOM. Our development goal is to achieve an effective area for the FOM that is comparable to or greater than that of the Gen2-DOM itself. A key feature of the FOM is its external placement, allowing for installation without modifying the existing configuration or layout of the Gen2-DOMs. We evaluated the optical characteristics of the FOM, including fiber attenuation length, wavelength shifting efficiency, and transmission efficiency, through a combination of experimental measurements, Geant4 simulations, and numerical calculations. Based on these results, we refined the design of the FOM prototype and quantitatively assessed the improvement in the Gen2-DOM's effective detection area through simulations.
