Advances in IceCube ice modelling & what to expect from the Upgrade

The IceCube Neutrino Observatory instruments about 1 km³ of deep, glacial ice at the geographic South Pole using 5160 photomultipliers to detect Cherenkov light from relativistic, charged particles. Most IceCube science goals rely on precise understanding and modelling of the optical properties of the instrumented ice. A peculiar light propagation effect observed by IceCube is an anisotropic attenuation, which is aligned with the local flow of the ice. Recent efforts have shown this effect is most likely due to curved photon trajectories resulting from the asymmetric light diffusion in the birefringent polycrystalline microstructure of the ice. This new model can be optimized by adjusting the average orientation, size and shape of the ice crystals. We present the parametrization of the birefringence effect in our photon propagation simulation, the fitting procedures and results. The anticipated potential of calibration instrumentation in the upcoming IceCube Upgrade to improve on known shortcomings of the current ice modelling is also discussed. (paper)