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Cherenkov radiation glowing in the core of the Advanced Test Reactor at Idaho National Laboratory. Cherenkov radiation (/ tʃ ə ˈ r ɛ ŋ k ɒ f / [1]) is electromagnetic radiation emitted when a charged particle (such as an electron) passes through a dielectric medium (such as distilled water) at a speed greater than the phase velocity (speed of propagation of a wavefront in a medium) of ...
The neutrino [a] was postulated first by Wolfgang Pauli in 1930 to explain how beta decay could conserve energy, momentum, and angular momentum ().In contrast to Niels Bohr, who proposed a statistical version of the conservation laws to explain the observed continuous energy spectra in beta decay, Pauli hypothesized an undetected particle that he called a "neutron", using the same -on ending ...
Neutrino telescopes consist of hundreds to thousands of optical modules distributed over a large volume. Neutrino astronomy is the branch of astronomy that gathers information about astronomical objects by observing and studying neutrinos emitted by them with the help of neutrino detectors in special Earth observatories. [1]
Neutrino observatories will "give astronomers fresh eyes with which to study the universe". [3] Various detection methods have been used. Super Kamiokande is a large volume of water surrounded by phototubes that watch for the Cherenkov radiation emitted when an incoming neutrino creates an electron or muon in the water.
IMB detected fast-moving particles such as those produced by proton decay or neutrino interactions by picking up the Cherenkov radiation generated when such a particle moves faster than light's speed in water. Since directional information was available from the phototubes, IMB was able to estimate the initial direction of neutrinos.
The detector contains 50 kilotons of water, which functions as a target for neutrino interactions. The neutrinos interact with the target water and emit Cherenkov radiation, measured by thousands of photomultiplier tubes (PMTs) surrounding the target volume. [6]
The Frank–Tamm formula yields the amount of Cherenkov radiation emitted on a given frequency as a charged particle moves through a medium at superluminal velocity. It is named for Russian physicists Ilya Frank and Igor Tamm who developed the theory of the Cherenkov effect in 1937, for which they were awarded a Nobel Prize in Physics in 1958.
Cherenkov radiation is emitted by a charged particle when it passes through a material with a speed greater than c/n, where n is the index of refraction of the material. The angle of the photons with respect to the charged particle's direction depends on velocity. A number of Cherenkov detector geometries have been used.