Computer simulations of cosmic-ray air showers

Abstract Computer simulations have been made of the average characteristics of extensive air showers initiated by primary protons in a wide range of energy. The simulations, which are perhaps unusual in the detailed information available for each shower, have been made as part of a design study for future experiments intended to identify the mass number of energetic primaries. The sensitivity of the data from our simulations to the detail of the adopted model for interactions has been investigated by incorporating the consequences of the results from recent accelerator and cosmic ray experiments. The simulations have been made by means of a variety of computational techniques; in most simulations a simple representation of the interaction of high-energy nucleons and pions has been employed which is characterized by accounting well for presently available experimental data on large air showers. We conclude that the treatment of showers, although derived with a simple model for interactions, may be usefully employed to study the fluctuations in air-shower development.