Geant4 software application for the simulation of cosmic ray showers in the Earth’s atmosphere

Abstract

Galactic cosmic rays and solar energetic particles with sufficient rigidity to penetrate the geomagnetic field, enter the Earth’s atmosphere and interact with the electrons and the nuclei of its atoms and molecules. From the interactions with the nuclei, cascades of secondary particles are produced that can be detected by ground-based detectors such as neutron monitors and muon counters. The theoretical study of the details of the atmospheric showers is of great importance, since many applications, such as the dosimetry for the aviation crews, are based on it. In this work, a new application which can be used in order to study the showers of the secondary particles in the atmosphere is presented. This application is based on the Monte Carlo simulation techniques, performed by using the well-known Geant4 toolkit. We present a thorough analysis of the simulation’s critical points, including a description of the procedure applied in order to model the atmosphere and the geomagnetic field. Representative results obtained by the application are presented and future plans for the project are discussed.