AURA - A radio frequency extension to IceCube

The excellent radio frequency transparency of cold polar ice, combined with the coherent Cherenkov emission produced by neutrinoinduced showers when viewed at wavelengths longer than a few centimeters, has spurred considerable interest in a large-scale radiowave neutrino detector array. The AURA (Askaryan Under-ice Radio Array) experimental effort, within the IceCube collaboration, seeks to take advantage of the opportunity presented by IceCube [1][2] drilling through 2010 to establish the radio frequency technology needed to achieve 100−1000 km effective volumes. In the 2006-2007 Austral summer 3 deep in-ice radio frequency (RF) clusters were deployed at depths of ∼ 1300 m and ∼ 300 m on top of the IceCube strings. Additional 3 clusters will be deployed in the Austral summer of 2008-2009. Verification and calibration results from the current deployed clusters are presented, and the detector design and performances are discussed. Augmentation of IceCube with large-scale (1000 kmsr) radio and acoustic arrays would extend the physics reach of IceCube into the EeV-ZeV regime and offer substantial technological redundancy.