FLUKA: Fluktuierende Kaskade for Cosmogenic Backgrounds

by Anton Empl (University of Houston)

Thursday 4 Feb 2016, 14:00 → 15:00 Europe/Berlin

Main-2-313 (MPI fuer Physik)

FLUKA is a fully integrated particle physics Monte Carlo simulation package, originally introduced to aid shielding design for particle accelerators (CERN, 1962). More recently it has been used in various applications, including high energy particle physics, medical physics, and of relevance here, to simulate cosmic ray and cosmogenic backgrounds in deep underground experiments. Current and next generation experiments that search with increased sensitivity for rare-physics events will require precise predictions of cosmogenic backgrounds. In particular, cosmogenic muon-induced neutrons and unstable isotopes are potentially important contributors to backgrounds in underground detectors. Recent high quality deep underground measurements for cosmogenic neutrons in large liquid scintillator targets were used to evaluate the FLUKA simulation package, with encouraging results. The improved results and conclusions drawn from the detailed benchmark comparison with data from the Borexino (LNGS) experiment are discussed. The agreement between FLUKA predictions and the Borexino experimental data is quite excellent at this point. Additional aspects which will be addressed: - Lead as a heavy target material - Cosmogenic neutrons at shallow depth (and muon capture) - Alternative use of cosmogenic muons studied with FLUKA