Scarlini, E.

Muon Radiography allows to map the density of a volcanic cone. It is based on the measurement of the attenuation of the flux of muons present in the cosmic radiation on the ground. The MU-RAY project has developed an innovative detector designed for the muon radiography. The main features are the low electric power consumption, robustness and transportability, good spatial resolution and muon time of flight measurement. A 1 m2 detector prototype has been constructed. and collected data at Mt. Vesuvius for approximately 1 month in spring 2013. A second campaign of measurement has been performed at the Puy de Dˆome, France, in the last four months of 2013. In this article the principles of muon radiography, the MU-RAY detector and the first results from the collected data will be described.

The MU-RAY detector has been designed to perform muon radiography of volcanoes. The possible use on the field introduces several constraints. First the electric power consumption must be reduced to the minimum, so that the detector can be solar-powered. Moreover it must be robust and transportable, for what concerns the front-end electronics and data acquisition. A 1m2 prototype has been constructed and is taking data at Mt.Vesuvius. The detector consists of modules of 32 scintillator bars with wavelength shifting fibers and silicon photomultiplier read-out. A dedicated front-end electronics has been developed, based on the SPIROC ASIC. An introduction to muon radiography principles, the MU-RAY detector description and results obtained in laboratory will be presented.