Towards the radio-detection of cosmic particles with the SKA

The huge number of antenna elements and beam forming capability proposed for the SKA offers a unique opportunity for the investigation of cosmic rays via radio wave production from cascade showers produced either in the atmosphere or in the regolith of the moon, as outlined on two recent papers Huege et al. 2014 and Bray et al. 2014.

The aim of this workshop is to further facilitate the detection of energetic cosmic particles in the atmosphere and on the Moon with the SKA, and focus research efforts to maximise the science outcomes of such experiments. This includes not only work on the SKA itself, but milestones to be achieved during the lead-up to full SKA operation. The meeting will be held at Jodrell Bank Observatory, the radio astronomy facility of The University of Manchester, on 5th-7th May 2015, in proximity to the SKA Project Design Office, and historically where some of the earliest experiments on the detection of cosmic rays using radio techniques were undertaken.

The lunar Askaryan technique has the potential to explore both the neutrino and cosmic-ray sky above 10^19 eV. Short ns-wide radio pulses are emitted by electromagnetic cascades produced by either cosmic rays or neutrinos interacting within the regolith of the moon. SKA-LOW and SKA-MID will be able to detect this emission at energies where the Pierre Auger Observatory and Telescope Array have seen the first hints of anisotropy and will dramatically increase the sensitive detection area to millions of km^2. Potentially SKA could also advance particle astronomy to the point where sources can be located directly.

Detection of air showers induced by cosmic rays of lower energies (~10^17 eV) in the atmosphere above SKA-LOW can be used to study the transition from Galactic to extragalactic sources with unprecedented precision regarding the mass composition of the primary particles. Such measurements, complementary to those at the Pierre Auger Observatory and others, are the key to disentangling the complex interplay of different particle species in producing the structures seen in the all-particle spectrum. Furthermore, near-field interferometry of the air shower radio emission will allow the study of cross sections and other particle physics aspects at energies beyond the reach of the LHC via detailed "tomography" of the electromagnetic cascades in air showers.

More information: http://www.jb.man.ac.uk/meetings/cosmic2015/