Testing Gamma/Hadron Separation for Ultra-High-Energy Cherenkov Astronomy

TL;DR

This paper investigates gamma/hadron separation techniques for the Dark100 Cherenkov telescope array, focusing on how different hadronic background models influence background rejection capabilities for ultra-high-energy gamma-ray astronomy.

Contribution

It presents a novel simulation-based analysis of gamma/hadron separation considering various hadronic background models for the Dark100 array.

Findings

Hadronic background models significantly affect gamma/hadron separation performance.

Simulation results highlight the importance of background model selection in sensitivity estimates.

The study provides insights into optimizing background rejection for ultra-high-energy gamma-ray observations.

Abstract

Dark100 is a planned array of six telescopes, using the Panoramic Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (PANOSETI) telescope system. It will operate as an imaging atmospheric Cherenkov telescope array, with a telescope design and array layout optimized for accessing gamma rays with tens of TeV to PeV energies. The science goals of Dark100 include the search for ultra-heavy dark matter, observations of Galactic Pevatrons, and the search for ultra-fast optical transients. Rejection of background cosmic rays is key to the sensitivity of the array. We present a first study of gamma/hadron separation based on simulated gamma rays and protons, focusing on the impact of the hadronic background models used in CORSIKA.