Monte-Carlo studies of the angular resolution of a future Cherenkov gamma-ray telescope

TL;DR

This paper uses Monte-Carlo simulations to explore the potential improvements in angular resolution for future Cherenkov gamma-ray telescopes, aiming to optimize design parameters for enhanced observational precision.

Contribution

It provides a detailed analysis of how various telescope and array parameters influence the angular resolution of next-generation IACTs, offering guidance for future telescope design.

Findings

Angular resolution could be improved to approximately 1 arcminute.

Optimal array configurations depend on camera pixel size and telescope separation.

Design modifications can significantly enhance the angular resolution of future gamma-ray telescopes.

Abstract

The current generation of Imaging Atmospheric telescopes (IACTs) has demonstrated the power of this observational technique, providing high sensitivity and an angular resolution of $\sim0.1^{\circ}$ per event above an energy threshold of $\sim$100 GeV. Planned future arrays of IACTs such as AGIS or CTA are aiming at significantly improving the angular resolution. Preliminary results have shown that values down to $\sim 1'$ might be achievable. Here we present results of Monte-Carlo simulations that aim to exploring the limits of angular resolution for next generation IACTs and investigate how the resolution can be optimised by changes to array and telescope parameters such as the number of pixel in the camera, the field of view of the camera, the angular pixel size, the mirror size, and also the telescope separation.