New generation atmospheric Cherenkov detectors
Abstract
High energy γ-ray astronomy has been established during the last decade through the launch of the Compton Gamma Ray Observatory (CGRO) and the success of its ground-based counterpart, the imaging atmospheric Cherenkov technique. In the aftermath of their important and surprising scientific results a worldwide effort developing and designing new generation atmospheric Cherenkov detectors is underway. These novel instruments will have higher sensitivity at E > 250 GeV, but most importantly, will be able to close the unexplored energy gap between 20 GeV and 250 GeV. Several ground-based detectors are proposed or under construction. Aspects of the techniques used and sensitivity are discussed in this overview paper. The instruments cover largely complementary energy ranges and together are expected to explore the γ-ray sky between 20 GeV and 100 TeV with unprecedented sensitivity.
- Publication:
-
Astroparticle Physics
- Pub Date:
- June 1999
- DOI:
- 10.1016/S0927-6505(99)00056-0
- arXiv:
- arXiv:astro-ph/9901354
- Bibcode:
- 1999APh....11..235K
- Keywords:
-
- Astrophysics
- E-Print:
- 13 pages, 4 Figures, Invited talk at the VERITAS Workshop on TeV Astrophysics of Extragalactic Sources, eds. M. Catanese and T. Weekes, to be published in Astroparticle Physics