# A Scintillator and Radio Enhancement of the IceCube Surface Detector Array

## TL;DR

This paper discusses an upgrade to the IceCube surface detector array, integrating scintillation detectors and radio antennas to improve calibration, veto capabilities, and enable new scientific investigations of cosmic rays and astrophysical phenomena.

## Contribution

It introduces a hybrid surface array combining scintillators, radio antennas, and Cherenkov tanks, with prototype deployments demonstrating feasibility and potential scientific benefits.

## Key findings

- Prototype stations with scintillators deployed at South Pole in 2018
- Enhanced calibration and veto capabilities demonstrated
- Potential for improved cosmic ray composition analysis

## Abstract

An upgrade of the present IceCube surface array (IceTop) with scintillation detectors and possibly radio antennas is foreseen. The enhanced array will calibrate the impact of snow accumulation on the reconstruction of cosmic-ray showers detected by IceTop as well as improve the veto capabilities of the surface array. In addition, such a hybrid surface array of radio antennas, scintillators and Cherenkov tanks will enable a number of complementary science targets for IceCube such as enhanced accuracy to mass composition of cosmic rays, search for PeV photons from the Galactic Center, or more thorough tests of the hadronic interaction models. Two prototype stations with 7 scintillation detectors each have been already deployed at the South Pole in January 2018. These R&D studies provide a window of opportunity to integrate radio antennas with minimal effort.