Event-by-event reconstruction of air-shower events with IceCube using a two component lateral distribution function

TL;DR

This paper introduces a new method using a two-component lateral distribution function to estimate low-energy muon content in air showers on an event-by-event basis with IceCube, aiding composition analysis and model testing.

Contribution

The paper presents a novel single-event estimation technique for low-energy muons in air showers using a two-component LDF, improving reconstruction accuracy without dedicated muon detectors.

Findings

Effective reconstruction of primary energy and low-energy muon number.

Demonstrated method's potential for composition analysis.

Enhanced understanding of hadronic interactions.

Abstract

The IceCube Neutrino Observatory, located at the geographic South Pole, comprises a surface component, IceTop, and an optical in-ice array. This unique com\-bi\-na\-tion allows for coincident measurements of low-energy ($\sim \rm{GeV}$) and high-energy ($\gtrsim 400\,\rm{GeV}$) muons produced in cosmic-ray air showers. The ratio of the low- and high-energy muon yields can constitute a useful tool not only for composition analyses but also for testing different hadronic interaction models. However, since IceTop does not feature dedicated muon detectors, the measurement of the low-energy muon component for individual air showers is challenging. In this work, a new approach for a single-event based estimation of the low-energy muon content using a two component lateral distribution function (LDF) is utilized. This method combines an analytic description for the electromagnetic and muon lateral distributions of the total signal, with an aim to reconstruct primary energy and low-energy muon number, respectively. The underlying principle of this method as well as the resulting reconstruction performance will be detailed in this work.