We argue that an astrophysical solution to the ultrahigh energy cosmic ray (UHECR) problem is viable. The detailed study of UHECR energy spectra is performed. The spectral features of extragalactic protons interacting with the cosmic microwave background (CMB) are calculated in a model-independent way. Using the power-law generation spectrum $\ensuremath{\propto}{E}^{\ensuremath{-}{\ensuremath{\gamma}}_{g}}$ as the only assumption, we analyze four features of the proton spectrum: the GZK cutoff, dip, bump, and the second dip. We found the dip, induced by electron-positron production on the CMB, to be the most robust feature, existing in energy range $1\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{18}\char21{}4\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{19}\text{ }\text{ }\mathrm{eV}$. Its shape is stable relative to various phenomena included in calculations: discreteness of the source distribution, different modes of UHE proton propagation (from rectilinear to diffusive), local overdensity or deficit of the sources, large-scale inhomogeneities in the universe, and interaction fluctuations. The dip is well confirmed by observations of the AGASA, HiRes, Fly's Eye, and Yakutsk detectors. With two free parameters (${\ensuremath{\gamma}}_{g}$ and flux normalization constant) the dip describes about 20 energy bins with ${\ensuremath{\chi}}^{2}/\mathrm{d}.\mathrm{o}.\mathrm{f}.\ensuremath{\approx}1$ for each experiment. The best fit is reached at ${\ensuremath{\gamma}}_{g}=2.7$, with the allowed range 2.55\char21{}2.75. The dip is used for energy calibration of the detectors. For each detector independently, the energy is shifted by factor $\ensuremath{\lambda}$ to reach the minimum ${\ensuremath{\chi}}^{2}$. We found ${\ensuremath{\lambda}}_{\mathrm{Ag}}=0.9$, ${\ensuremath{\lambda}}_{\mathrm{Hi}}=1.2$, and ${\ensuremath{\lambda}}_{\mathrm{Ya}}=0.75$ for the AGASA, HiRes, and Yakutsk detectors, respectively. Remarkably, after this energy shift the fluxes and spectra of all three detectors agree perfectly, with discrepancy between AGASA and HiRes at $Eg1\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{20}\text{ }\text{ }\mathrm{eV}$ being not statistically significant. The excellent agreement of the dip with observations should be considered as confirmation of UHE proton interaction with the CMB. The dip has two flattenings. The high energy flattening at $E\ensuremath{\approx}1\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{19}\text{ }\text{ }\mathrm{eV}$ automatically explains ankle, the feature observed in all experiments starting from the 1980s. The low-energy flattening at $E\ensuremath{\approx}1\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{18}\text{ }\text{ }\mathrm{eV}$ reproduces the transition to galactic cosmic rays. This transition is studied quantitatively in this work. Inclusion of primary nuclei with a fraction of more than 20% upsets the agreement of the dip with observations, which we interpret as an indication of the acceleration mechanism. We study in detail the formal problems of spectra calculations: energy losses (the new detailed calculations are presented), the analytic method of spectrum calculations, and the study of fluctuations with the help of a kinetic equation. The UHECR sources, AGN and GRBs, are studied in a model-dependent way, and acceleration is discussed. Based on the agreement of the dip with existing data, we make the robust prediction for the spectrum at $1\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{18}\char21{}1\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{20}\text{ }\text{ }\mathrm{eV}$ to be measured in the nearest future by the Auger detector. We also predict the spectral signature of nearby sources, if they are observed by Auger. This paper is long and contains many technical details. For those who are interested only in physical content we recommend the Introduction and Conclusions, which are written as autonomous parts of the paper.

On astrophysical solution to ultrahigh energy cosmic rays

Since its original postulation by Wolfgang Pauli in 1930, the neutrino has played a prominent role in our understanding of nuclear and particle physics. In the intervening 80 years, scientists have detected and measured neutrinos from a variety of sources, both man made and natural. Underlying all of these observations, and any inferences we may have made from them, is an understanding of how neutrinos interact with matter. Knowledge of neutrino interaction cross sections is an important and necessary ingredient in any neutrino measurement. With the advent of new precision experiments, the demands on our understanding of neutrino interactions is becoming even greater. The purpose of this article is to survey our current knowledge of neutrino cross sections across all known energy scales: from the very lowest energies to the highest that we hope to observe. The article covers a wide range of neutrino interactions including coherent scattering, neutrino capture, inverse beta decay, low-energy nuclear interactions, quasielastic scattering, resonant pion production, kaon production, deep inelastic scattering, and ultrahigh energy interactions. Strong emphasis is placed on experimental data whenever such measurements are available.

/pdf/from-ev-to-eev-neutrino-cross-sections-across-energy-scales-4kxwyie7x1.pdf

From eV to EeV: Neutrino Cross Sections Across Energy Scales

The origin of the highest energy cosmic rays is still unknown. The discovery of their sources is expected to reveal the workings of the most energetic astrophysical accelerators in the Universe. Current observations show a spectrum consistent with an origin in extragalactic astrophysical sources. Candidate sources range from the birth of compact objects to explosions related to gamma-ray bursts or to events in active galaxies. We discuss the main effects of propagation from cosmologically distant sources, including interactions with cosmic background radiation and magnetic fields. We examine possible acceleration mechanisms leading to a survey of candidate sources and their signatures. New questions arise from an observed hint of sky anisotropies and an unexpected evolution of composition indicators. Future observations may reach the necessary sensitivity to achieve charged particle astronomy and to observe ultrahigh-energy photons and neutrinos, which may further illuminate the workings of the Universe a...

The Astrophysics of Ultrahigh-Energy Cosmic Rays

http://particle.astro.ru.nl/pub/JPPNP63-293.pdf

Cosmic rays from the knee to the highest energies

The Telescope Array (TA) experiment, located in the western desert of Utah, USA, is designed for the observation of extensive air showers from extremely high energy cosmic rays. The experiment has a surface detector array surrounded by three fluorescence detectors to enable simultaneous detection of shower particles at ground level and fluorescence photons along the shower track. The TA surface detectors and fluorescence detectors started full hybrid observation in March, 2008. In this article we describe the design and technical features of the TA surface detector.

http://www.icrr.u-tokyo.ac.jp/~fukushim/WEB/pap/SD-performance.pdf

The surface detector array of the Telescope Array experiment

We have measured the cosmic ray spectrum above 10(17.2) eV using the two air-fluorescence detectors of the High Resolution Fly's Eye observatory operating in monocular mode. We describe the detector, phototube, and atmospheric calibrations, as well as the analysis techniques for the two detectors. We fit the spectrum to a model consisting of galactic and extragalactic sources.

/pdf/measurement-of-the-flux-of-ultrahigh-energy-cosmic-rays-from-1cn75cbylo.pdf

Yu. A. Fedorova

Papers

Measurement of the flux of ultrahigh energy cosmic rays from monocular observations by the High Resolution Fly's Eye experiment.