Optimization of the coupling of optical fibers to an SiPM for a scintillator upgrade of the Pierre Auger Observatory

The Pierre Auger Observatory successfully measures cosmic-ray air-showers at the highest energies by detecting both the fluorescence light produced in the atmosphere and the particle density of the shower at the ground. Nevertheless, this procedure does not allow for a precise measurement of the muon to electron ratio of a single shower. As this quantity is connected to the mass of the primary particle, it allows for a cosmic-ray mass composition measurement. To improve the ability of separating muons from the electromagnetic component, scintillator based detectors will be added to each surface detector station. The basic design will consist of several scintillator bars feeding the produced light into a bundle of wavelength shifting fibers. The light can be detected by photomultipliers (PMTs) or by silicon photomultipliers (SiPMs). The latter benefit from their higher photon detection efficiency and robustness. Due to the smaller area of the SiPMs compared to a PMT, the light detection efficiency of this system strongly depends on the quality of the optical coupling of the fiber bundle to the SiPM. Possible solutions are compared.