Precision measurement of electron and positron flux in cosmic rays with the AMS-02 Detector

The cosmic ray electron and positron flux measurement can address a series of astrophysics and particle physics questions. This thesis presents an analysis of electron and positron flux from 0.5 GeV to 1 TeV using the first 30 months of data taking( over 41 billion events), with the AMS-02 detector on the International Space Station(ISS) 330-410 km above earth. A precise calibration of the Electromagnetic Calorimeter(ECAL) signals is performed to obtain stable energy measurement. A reconstruction algorithm for electromagnetic showers is implemented to measure energy and achieve high particle identification accuracy of electron and positron separating them from the proton background. The result of combined electron and positron flux measurement shows a smooth spectrum with no sharp structure. The spectral index ... above 30 GeV is observed to be ... (energy scale). This provides precise measurement for cosmic ray electrons and positrons and can contribute to probing the origin of cosmic rays, informing the studies of new physics..

Department dc:contributor.department

Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Physics.

Grantor dc:publisher

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Year dc:date.issued

2016

Author dc:creator

• Chen, Hai, Ph. D. Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Ulrich Becker and Andrei Kounine.

• Physics.

Statement dc:rights

• M.I.T. theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from this source for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission. See provided URL for inquiries about permission.

Licence dc:rights.uri

• http://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/7582

Language dc:language.iso

eng

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/103243

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:dspace.mit.edu:1721.1/103243