Calculation of the Cherenkov light yield from low energetic secondary particles accompanying high-energy muons in ice and water with Geant4 simulations

In this work we investigate and parameterize the amount and angular distribution of Cherenkov photons, which are generated by low-energy secondary particles (typically ≲500≲500 MeV), which accompany a muon track in water or ice. These secondary particles originate from small energy loss processes. We investigate the contributions of the different energy loss processes as a function of the muon energy and the maximum transferred energy. For the calculation of the angular distribution we have developed a generic transformation method, which allows us to derive the angular distribution of Cherenkov photons for an arbitrary distribution of track directions and their velocities.

► High energy muons in neutrino telescopes are accompanied by secondary particles. ► Secondary particles from small energy losses (<0.5 GeV) appear almost continuously. ► These particles increase the Cherenkov light yield by some ten percent. ► We parametrize the additional light yield and its angular distribution. ► A generic method to calculate the angular photon distribution is presented.