Regensburg 2016 – wissenschaftliches Programm
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UP: Fachverband Umweltphysik
UP 12: Methods - Remote Sensing
UP 12.3: Vortrag
Donnerstag, 10. März 2016, 11:45–12:00, H41
Designing a muon detector for volcanoes — •Lukas Fieber1, Nicole Bobrowski1,2, Markward Britsch3,4, Ulrich Platt1, and Michael Schmelling4 — 1IUP, Heidelberg, Germany — 2University of Mainz, Mainz, Germany — 3Physikalisches Institut, Heidelberg, Germany — 4Max Planck Institut für Kernphysik, Heidelberg, Germany
High energy muons can penetrate about one kilometer of rock. Measurements of the absorption of cosmic ray muons can be used to determine the density profile of the material traversed by these particles. Applying this method to a volcanic edifice can open a window to its inner structure and even the magma level. This method improves the resolution by one order of magnitude compared to traditional measurement methods like seismologic and electromagnetic ones.
Such investigations have been carried out by several research groups using scintillator detectors with an exposure time of the order of a month. The results obtained are very promising and could indicate that muon detection techniques will play a key role in volcano structure analysis and understanding volcano eruption dynamics.
Our aim is to build a muon detector, using a detector material such that the exposure time can be reduced by enlarging the detection area without unduly increasing the costs. The detector should be functional in the given environment of volcanoes, meaning low power consumption, relatively small and easy to transport. To achieve this goal, we look into alternatives to the standard detection devices. Theoretical considerations and practical tests will be presented.