Timing Calibration of the ANTARES Neutrino Telescope

TL;DR

This paper discusses the timing calibration system of the ANTARES neutrino telescope, emphasizing its importance for accurate neutrino detection and describing validation measurements that ensure optimal performance.

Contribution

It presents the design and validation of the ANTARES timing calibration system, crucial for precise neutrino astronomy.

Findings

Calibration system achieves expected timing resolution

Laboratory and in-situ measurements validate performance

Enhanced accuracy in neutrino track reconstruction

Abstract

On May 2008 the ANTARES collaboration completed the installation of a neutrino telescope in the Mediterranean Sea. This detector consists of a tridimensional array of almost 900 photomultipliers (PMTs) distributed in 12 lines. These PMTs can collect the Cherenkov light emitted by the muons produced in the interaction of high energy cosmic neutrinos with the matter surrounding the detector. A good timing resolution is crucial in order to infer the neutrino track direction and to make astronomy. In this presentation I describe the time calibration systems of the ANTARES detector including some measurements (made both at the laboratory and in-situ) which validate the expected performance.