Atmospheric muons at PeV energies in radio neutrino detectors

TL;DR

This paper evaluates the background noise from atmospheric muons in radio neutrino detectors, emphasizing the uncertainties in predictions and exploring mitigation strategies to improve detection sensitivity at PeV energies.

Contribution

It provides the first detailed estimates of atmospheric muon background rates and uncertainties for next-generation radio neutrino detectors, and discusses mitigation methods.

Findings

Background rate estimates vary significantly across models.

Mitigation strategies like parent air shower detection can reduce muon background.

Identifies key requirements for measuring prompt muon flux above 10 PeV.

Abstract

Experiments seeking to detect radio emission stemming from neutrino interactions will soon reach sensitivities that bring a detection within reach. Since experiments like RNO-G or the future IceCube-Gen2 target more than an order of magnitude more effective volume than existing experiments, the renewed and detailed study of rare backgrounds is needed. In this paper, we study the potential background from energy losses of highly energetic atmospheric muons. Due to both limited experimental measurements and limited modeling in hadronic interaction models, the expected event rate is subject to large uncertainties. Here, we estimate rate predictions and their uncertainties for different models and instrumental parameters. We also study possible routes towards mitigation of the muon background, such as parent air shower detection, and illustrate what is needed to make the first measurement of the prompt muon flux at energies above 10 PeV.