Magnetic Field Imaging by Cosmic-Ray Muons (Magic-μ): First Feasibility Simulation for Strong Magnetic Fields

We have proposed a novel application for cosmic-ray muography, called Magic-$\mu$, which is short for Magnetic field Imaging by Cosmic-ray Muons. The general goal of Magic-$\mu$ is to detect the presence of a magnetic field or magnetic flux density whose three-dimensional distribution is unknown. Depending on the application, Magic-$\mu$ can have three detection modes. The first is"magnetic field imaging,"which is detecting the presence of a magnetic field in specific voxels within a region of space. The other two modes, transmission and deflection, aim not only to detect the presence but also to measure the flux density of the magnetic field. We have performed a feasibility study using the PHITS Monte Carlo simulation code, for strong and weak magnetic fields. In this paper, we first give an overview of the concept and basic principles of magnetic field muography. Then, the results of the feasibility study on magnetic field imaging for a strong magnetic field (more than 500 mT) are presented.