Measurement of the atmospheric muon flux with the NEMO Phase-1 detector

The NEMO Collaboration installed and operated an underwater detector including prototypes of the critical elements of a possible underwater km(3) neutrino telescope: a four-floor tower (called Mini-Tower) and a Junction Box. The detector was developed to test some of the main systems of the km(3) detector, including the data transmission, the power distribution, the timing calibration and the acoustic positioning systems as well as to verify the capabilities of a single tridimensional detection structure to reconstruct muon tracks. We present results of the analysis of the data collected with the NEMO MiniTower. The position of photomultiplier tubes (PMTs) is determined through the acoustic position system. Signals detected with PMTs are used to reconstruct the tracks of atmospheric muons. The angular distribution of atmospheric muons was measured and results compared to Monte Carlo simulations. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.