Structure of Air Showers

W. E. Hazen, R. W. Williams, and C. A. Randall, Jr.
Phys. Rev. 93, 578 – Published 1 February 1954
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Abstract

Cosmic-ray air showers of total energy in the range 1014 to 1015 ev have been studied at 3260-m elevation with a large multiplate cloud chamber in combination with five thin-walled ionization chambers. The spatial distribution of electrons near the shower axis is usually a smooth function of distance with a singularity less marked than 1r. Evidence is presented, however, to show that some showers have a lumpy structure near the axis. The showers are very poor in high-energy electrons and photons near the axis, relative to the expectation for a single electron-photon cascade. The angular distributions of shower axes are found for various shower sizes and prove to be quite similar to those expected for single electron-photon cascades. The implications for various shower models are discussed and a fairly extensive nucleonic cascade is indicated.

  • Received 10 August 1953

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRev.93.578

©1954 American Physical Society

Authors & Affiliations

W. E. Hazen

  • University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan

R. W. Williams

  • Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts

C. A. Randall, Jr.

  • Ohio University, Athens, Ohio

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Issue

Vol. 93, Iss. 3 — February 1954

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