Radio signatures of cosmic-ray showers with deep in-ice antennas

TL;DR

This paper introduces FAERIE, a simulation framework combining CoREAS and GEANT4, to model cosmic-ray radio signatures in ice, aiding in detector calibration and background discrimination for ultra-high-energy neutrino experiments.

Contribution

The paper presents FAERIE, a novel simulation tool that integrates air shower and ice interactions to study cosmic-ray radio signals in deep ice detectors.

Findings

FAERIE effectively simulates cosmic-ray radio signatures in ice.

Results can improve cosmic-ray veto design for neutrino detectors.

Validation of the simulation framework with experimental data is ongoing.

Abstract

To detect ultra-high-energy neutrinos, experiments such as ARA and RNO-G target the radio emission these particles induce when cascading in the ice, using deep antennas in South Pole or in Greenland. One of the main backgrounds for such signals is the radio emission generated by cosmic-ray showers, either directly in the ice, or in the air and transmitted to the ice, which can both reach the deep antennas. The first detection of cosmic rays with deep antennas would thus validate this detection principle and allow us to calibrate the detectors. FAERIE, the Framework for the simulation of Air shower Emission of Radio for in-Ice Experiments, is a numerical tool that couples both CoREAS and GEANT4 Monte-Carlo codes to simulate the radio emission from cosmic-ray showers deep in the ice. Using this code, we will investigate cosmic-ray radio signatures and the possible implications on the design of a cosmic-ray veto.