A new direction sensitive Optical Module to be employed in deep sea neutrino telescopes

The NEMO (NEutrino Mediterranean Observatory, [I. Amore, [NEMO Collaboration], et al., Int. J. Mod. Phys. A 22 (2007) 3509, arXiv:0709.3991 [astro-ph]]) project studies, within the KM3NeT framework [U.F. Katz, Nucl. Instr. and Meth. A 567 (2006) 457, arXiv:astro-ph/0606068], new technologies for a km 3 -scale neutrino telescope in the Mediterranean Sea. The telescope goal is the investigation of the high energy component of the cosmic neutrino spectrum. The detection of these neutrinos is a promising tool for a better understanding of the mechanisms that originate the extreme energy cosmic rays. Neutrino energy and direction are reconstructed collecting the Cherenkov light produced in water by the muon coming from a neutrino interaction. ototypes of a new large area (10 in.) 4-anode photomultiplier, and manufactured by Hamamatsu, on request of the NEMO Collaboration, will be used for the first time to detect the direction of the detected Cherenkov light at the NEMO Capo Passero site.