Abstract:
The Pyramid of the Sun, at Teotihuacan, Mexico, is being searched for possible hidden chambers, by means of muon attenuation measurements inside the pyramids volume. The muon tracker is located in a tunnel, running below the base and ending close to the symmetry axis of the monument. This study presents a brief description of the experimental technique and data analysis, as well as a comparison of the first year preliminary experimental results with physics simulations using GEANT4
Introduction
The use of cosmic muons to measure inhomogeneities in large volumes is a rapidly growing field. A classical example of this was the experiment carried out by Luis Alvarez et al. [1] who measured the attenuation of cosmic muons in the mass of the Keops Pyramid, in Giza, Egypt, while searching for hidden empty chambers. Although this technique has been applied to other practical problems, few archeological monuments present the necessary conditions to carry out a muon attenuation inspection of its volume. Among those exceptions is in the Mexican Pyramid of the Sun at Teotihuacan, hereafter referred to as Pyramid of the Sun. In a previous presentation [2] in this conference series, we described a project aimed at solving important archaeological questions concerning the Sun at Teotihuacan, using muon attenuation. Here we present an update on this project, which began its data-taking few months ago, including important experimental aspects, and details of the corresponding GEANT 4 Monte Carlo [3] simulations which are compared with our first experimental image.
Electronics (click for current versions): CAEN V1729 VME 4-ch, 12-bit 2 GS/s Switched Capacitor digitizer.
