Constraining Lorentz Invariance Violation using the muon content of extensive air showers measured at the Pierre Auger Observatory

PIERRE AUGER COLLABORATION; A. MARIAZZI

Berlin

Conferencia; 37th International Cosmic Ray Conference (ICRC2021); 2021

Lorentz symmetry requires the space-time structure to be the same for all observers, but, on the other hand, various quantum gravity theories suggest that it may be violated when approaching the Planck scale. Even a small violation of Lorentz Invariance (LI) could easily affect the propagation of Ultra-High Energy Cosmic Rays (UHECRs) on a cosmological scale. Moreover, at extreme energies, like those available in the collision of UHECRs with the atmosphere, one should also expect a change in the interactions due to Lorentz Invariance Violation (LIV). In this work, the effects of LIV on the development of Extensive Air Showers (EAS) have been considered. After having introduced LIV as a perturbation term in the single-particle dispersion relation, a library of simulated showers with different energies, primary particles and LIV strengths has been produced. For the first time, this effect has been studied using the muon content of air showers measured at the Pierre Auger Observatory. Limits on LIV parameters have been derived from a comparison between the Monte Carlo expectations and the muon fluctuation measurements from the Pierre Auger Observatory. The results are presented in this contribution.