The differences in delay times for air showers initiated by 100 TeV gamma rays and protons

The purpose of this study is to investigate whether there are any differences in the time delay distributions between showers initiated by gamma rays and by protons. The results of Monte Carlo calculations of atmospheric showers initiated by gamma rays and protons at an energy of 100 TeV show systematic differences. These differences are negligible at small distances from the core of the showers; at larger distances the effects become large. However, at large distances the particle densities are small at an energy of 100 TeV and the subsequent statistical fluctuations would make an identification of gamma-ray showers unreliable. However, these large effects should be included in corrections for the curvature of gamma-ray and proton shower fronts. (author)