Status and Plans for the Cherenkov Telescope Array
by
Riccardo Paoletti(SI)
→
Europe/Rome
131 (INFN Edificio C)
131
INFN Edificio C
Description
The last few years have seen stunning results both from ground-based gamma-ray astronomy from H.E.S.S.,
MAGIC, and VERITAS as the imaging atmospheric Cherenkov technique has matured, and from space since
the launch of the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope.
The Cherenkov Telescope Array (CTA) is an international collaboration formed to develop a next-generation ground-based array
of imaging atmospheric Cherenkov telescopes with a signicant advance in capabilities over current ground- and space-based telescopes.
CTA aims to have a factor of 10 improvement in sensitivity in the core energy range of 100 GeV to some tens of TeV, a threshold
energy well below 100 GeV, a factor of 3-5 improvement in angular resolution, and an effective area of at least
several square kilometers for energies above 10 TeV.
We describe the science drivers that motivate CTA and the technical challenges and advances required to achieve these goals.
Three sizes of telescopes (large, medium, and small, with diameters of roughly 24 m, 9-12 m, and 4-7 m) will be needed to cover this
broad energy range.
Giga-sample-per-second front-end electronics based on custom ASICs and a highly integrated modular camera design are under development.
