Speaker
Description
Water Cherenkov Detectors play a central role in high-energy astroparticle physics, with key applications in neutrino physics, gamma-ray astronomy, and cosmic-ray research. The performance of these detectors crucially relies on photomultiplier tubes (PMTs) to capture Cherenkov radiation. In recent years, employing multiPMT modules has emerged as a promising strategy to enhance the capabilities of large volume water and ice Cherenkov detectors.
In this presentation we will explore the innovative use of multiPMT modules integrated into small Water Cherenkov Detector units as a possible configuration for the outer array of the Southern Wide-Field Gamma-Ray Observatory (SWGO), a next generation experiment for high energy gamma ray detection based on an array of Water Cherenkov Detector units. SWGO will be located in the Atacama Desert in Chile and will be dedicated to gamma-ray surveys of the southern sky, covering an energy range from hundreds of GeV up to a few PeV.
The performance of gamma-ray experiments strongly depends on effective rejection of the hadronic background which can be achieved by successfully identifying the muonic component of the showers among other shower properties. We will investigate the potential of multiPMT modules by exploiting their intrinsic sensitivity to the directionality of Cherenkov light, training a machine-learning model capable of identifying the distinct spatial features of emission from muons and from the electromagnetic component of extensive air showers. We will then discuss the effectiveness of this strategy for muon counting and muon tagging in gamma–hadron discrimination studies.
