A possible point of contact between cosmic ray physics and archaeology: muon absorption radiography at the Tharros Phoenician-Roman site

摘要

Several on-going activities exploiting the potential of the muon-absorption radiography technique are focusing on the study of large volcanic structures located in different geographical regions. Nonetheless, the possible application of this non-destructive surveying method to other fields is also under consideration by different groups. Looking backward to the history of muon radiography, we can learn how the first important success of this technique was achieved in the archaeological field by the physicist Luis W. Alvarez in the 1960s. Further examples of possible applications can be found concerning geological and mining applications. In this paper a possible application of muon absorption radiography in the context of the archaeological research is proposed. Results of a simulation of a simplified case study are presented.