GAW - A very large field-of-view Imaging Atmospheric Cherenkov Telescope

TL;DR

GAW is a pioneering large-field-of-view Imaging Atmospheric Cherenkov Telescope designed to test new detection techniques for very high-energy gamma-ray astronomy, utilizing Fresnel lenses and single-photon counting.

Contribution

It introduces a novel large FoV IACT with Fresnel lenses and single-photon counting, enabling improved sensitivity and event triggering at lower photon counts.

Findings

Demonstrates feasibility of large FoV Cherenkov telescopes

Shows advantages of single-photon counting mode for event detection

Proposes a stereoscopic array configuration for enhanced observations

Abstract

GAW (Gamma Air Watch) is a pathfinder experiment in the TeV range to test the feasibility of a new generation of Imaging Atmospheric Cherenkov Telescopes (IACT). It combines high flux sensitivity with large field-of-view (FoV=24deg x 24deg) using Fresnel lenses, stereoscopic observational approach and single-photon counting mode. This particular counting mode, in comparison with the usual charge integration one, allows the triggering of events with a smaller number of collected Cherenkov photons keeping a good signal/background separation. GAW is conceived as an array of three identical imaging telescopes with 2.13 m diameter placed at the vertices of an equilateral triangle of 80 m side. The telescope will be built at the Calar Alto Observatory site (Sierra de Los Filabres - Almeria Spain, 2168 m a.s.l.) and is a joint effort of research institutes in Italy, Portugal and Spain. The main characteristics of the experiment will be reported.