A Bayesian method for air-shower reconstruction using Information Field Theory

Terveer K, Bouma S, Buitink S, Corstanje A, De Henau V, Eberle V, Enßlin TA, Frank P, Huege T, Laub P, Mulrey K, Nelles A, Strähnz S, Thoudam S, Watanabe K (2026)

Publication Type: Journal article

Publication year: 2026

Journal

Astroparticle Physics Elsevier

Book Volume: 179

Article Number: 103241

DOI: 10.1016/j.astropartphys.2026.103241

Abstract

The radio detection of extensive air showers provides a powerful method for studying the origin of high-energy cosmic rays. The Low-Frequency Array (LOFAR) offers unprecedentedly detailed measurements of the radio emission footprint. However, fully exploiting this information requires advanced reconstruction techniques. In this paper, we introduce a novel framework for air shower reconstruction based on Bayesian inference and Information Field Theory (IFT). Our method is built on a fully differentiable forward model of the radio signal, which incorporates a physical emission parameterization and a precise wavefront model. Additionally, we augment this physical model with Gaussian processes to account for systematic uncertainties in both the signal fluence and arrival timing. By leveraging gradient information, our approach enables efficient (three orders of magnitude acceleration w.r.t. the legacy method) and robust inference of the underlying physical shower parameters, such as primary energy and the depth of shower maximum, Xmax. This work provides not only point estimates but also a rigorous quantification of uncertainties. We achieve a resolution in Xmax of 25 g cm-2 and a radiation energy resolution of 12 % on simulations for LOFAR.

Authors with CRIS profile

Karen Terveer Lehrstuhl für Experimentalphysik (Astroteilchenphysik) Sjoerd Bouma Professur für Experimentelle Astroteilchenphysik, insbesondere Radionachweis von Neutrinos Philipp Laub Professur für Experimentelle Astroteilchenphysik, insbesondere Radionachweis von Neutrinos Anna Nelles Professur für Experimentelle Astroteilchenphysik, insbesondere Radionachweis von Neutrinos

Involved external institutions

Inter-University Institute for High Energies (IIHE) BE Belgium (BE) Max-Planck-Institut für Astrophysik / Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics DE Germany (DE) Radboud University Nijmegen NL Netherlands (NL) Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) DE Germany (DE) Khalifa University of Science, Technology & Research (KUSTAR) / جامعة خليفة AE United Arab Emirates (AE)

How to cite

APA:

Terveer, K., Bouma, S., Buitink, S., Corstanje, A., De Henau, V., Eberle, V.,... Watanabe, K. (2026). A Bayesian method for air-shower reconstruction using Information Field Theory. Astroparticle Physics, 179. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.astropartphys.2026.103241

MLA:

Terveer, Karen, et al. "A Bayesian method for air-shower reconstruction using Information Field Theory." Astroparticle Physics 179 (2026).

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