The IceCube Neutrino Observatory is the largest neutrino detector in the world, instrumenting one cubic kilometer of ice near the geographic South Pole. IceCube completed construction in 2011 and includes a densely instrumented 'DeepCore' component in the center of the detector. The goal of IceCube is to detect neutrinos at Teraelectronvolt (TeV) - Petaelectronvolt (PeV) energies from astrophysical accelerators which are thought to be the sources of the highest energy cosmic rays. DeepCore extends IceCube's energy reach down to 10 GeV in order to study phenomena such as atmospheric neutrino oscillations and neutrinos from the annihilation of dark matter in the Galactic Center.
This award will fund the University of Alabama (UA) group that has developed algorithms for detecting tau neutrinos in the waveforms of individual IceCube sensors, lowering the energy threshold for tau detection in order to increase sensitivity to astrophysical taus. Initial analysis of the first year of full detector data has already revealed hints of diffuse neutrino flux in excess of the expected atmospheric background in the 100 TeV - 1 PeV energy range, and the algorithms developed at UA for tau neutrino detection are especially well suited to this energy range.
Broader Impacts: UA has a strong commitment to secondary and undergraduate education. The PI has worked with undergraduates from various departments both in research and in developing outreach activities for local high schools. She also co-hosts a monthly gathering of female physics and engineering undergraduates and participates in public outreach activities that highlight IceCube's unique location and science goals.
