ICARUS

Collaboration

- Italy: Laboratori Nazionali di Gran Sasso, INFN; Department of Physics and INFN, University of Padova; Department of Physics and INFN, University of Milano; Department of Physics and INFN, University of Pavia; Politecnico di Milano (CESNEF), University of Milano; Department of Physics and INFN, University of L'Aquila; Universita' of Torino; INFN Pisa, San Piero a Grado (PI); ICGF del CNR di Torino, Torino.
- CERN, Geneva, Switzerland.
- People's Republic of China: IHEP - Academia Sinica, Beijing.
- Poland:Institute of Physics, University of Silesia, Katowice; Faculty of Physics and Nuclear Techniques, University of Mining and Metallurgy, Krakov; H. Niewodniczanski Institute of Nuclear Physics, Krakov; H. Niewodniczanski Institute of Nuclear Physics, Krakov; Institute of Physics, Jagellonian University, Krakov; A. Soltan Institute for Nuclear Studies, Warszawa; Institute of Theoretical Physics, Wroclaw University, Wroclaw; Institute of Mechanics and Machine Design, Krakow University of Technology, Krakow.
- Switzerland: Institute for Particle Physics, ETH Honggerberg, Zurich,
- USA: Department of Physics, UCLA, Los Angeles,

Laboratory: Gran Sasso National Laboratory

National Responsible: C. Rubbia (Pv)

1. Goal of the experiment
The experiment aims at the demonstration and at a comprehensive study of neutrino oscillations through the detection and detailed analysis of neutrino events coming both from natural (solar and atmospheric neutrinos) and artificial (CERN to Gran Sasso Long Baseline Neutrino Beam) sources. The other major issue of the ICARUS scientific program is the search for nucleon decay especially in SUSY favored (N --> n K) or exotic channels.

More on the experiment...

2.

Activities during 2001
Year 2001 was mostly dedicated to the test of the ICARUS 600 ton module and to the completion of the assembly before the module transportation at the LNGS. The planned program for 2001 has a delay of about 3 months mostly due to extra time needed for the T600 test setup.
Concerning the specific milestones for year 2001 the level of completion is the following:
1) Full functionality test of the ICARUS T600 first half-module.
The test was completed in July 2001 with fully satisfactory results.
2) Second half-module assembly.
The assembly is quite advanced; the level of completion at the end of 2001 is about 75 %.
3) Civil works and auxiliary plants installation in the Gran Sasso underground laboratory.
Logistics and planning for occupation of the LNGS underground halls is currently under evaluation of a dedicated INFN Committee on the basis of the proposals of the new experiments (ICARUS, MONOLITH and OPERA). The Committee will give its recommendations at the beginning of 2002.
4) T600 module installation in the Gran Sasso underground laboratory.
The T600 module is still in the assembly hall in Pavia (see previous points 2 and 3).
5) Engineering design of the ICANOE supermodule.
The ICANOE Collaboration dissolved at the beginning of 2001. The ICARUS Collaboration has recently submitted a new proposal for the realization of a multi-kton detector based on the replication (cloning) of the T600 module dedicated to atmospheric and long baseline neutrino oscillation studies.

Milestones 2002

Civil works and auxiliary plants installation in the Gran Sasso underground laboratory | 30-06-2002
Neutron shield for the T600 installation. | 31-10-2002
T600 transportation and installation in the Gran Sasso underground laboratory | 30-09-2002
T600 start up in the Gran Sasso underground laboratory | 31-12-2002

3. INFN contribution to the experiment in terms of manpower and financial support
Manpower:

Support to the experiment is largely dominated by the INFN contribution both for funding and for manpower. Contribution of INFN to the T600 corresponds to about 90 % of the total cost. Correspondingly, the INFN groups have the construction responsibility for the most relevant items (cryogenics and purification systems, internal detector mechanics, readout electronics, trigger systems, logistics). The number of researchers involved is 36 (24.8 FTE).
Contributions from non INFN groups concern the slow control system (ETH group) and the HV supply and control (UCLA group), the contribution of the IHEP-Beijing group is expressed in terms of manpower for the wiring of the chambers while the several groups from Polish institutions gave contributions on the T600 external trigger and are currently involved in the analysis of the events recorded during the T600 test run.

Budget for the Year 2002: 2257 kEuro
4. Publications in refereed journals (in 2001): 2
5. Conference talks (in 2001): 7
6. Number of undergraduate and doctoral thesis on the experiment: 2
7. Leadership roles in the experiment
C. Rubbia (Universita' degli Studi di Pavia ed INFN Sezione di Pavia) - Spokesman
E. Calligarich (INFN Sezione di Pavia ) - Project leader
8. Innovative instruments
As part of the cryogenics of the T600 module we have built a new type of modular evacuated thermal insulation suited for large liquid argon, nitrogen and oxygen cryostats.
9. Competing experiments
The project is in competition with the Japanese (K2K), American (MINOS) and European (OPERA) experiments for the search of neutrino oscillations on long baselines. Points in favour of the experiment are the direct demonstration of the oscillation phenomenon by means of the identification of nt and ne, the combined analysis of beam and atmospheric neutrinos, the possibility to extend the sensitivity by adding more detector units.