On the Electronic Component of Extensive Air Showers near the Axis

Abstract

Using two multiplate cloud chambers and five density detectors consisting of 250 G.M.-counter hodoscopes, characters of the electronic component of extensive air showers were investigated for various distances from the axis in the range r ≤10 m at 2770 m altitude. The size N of the selected showers extended from 1×10 5 to 2×10 6 . The following results were obtained: (1) The integral size spectrum can be represented by a power law of the form N -γ , where the value of γ varies from 1.5 to 2.0 as the size increases. (2) The lateral density distribution of the high-energy electronic component with the energy \(E{\geqslant}1\) Bev fits well to that of the pure electronic shower with the age parameter s =1.4. (3) The ratio of the density of high-energy electrons and photons to that of all electrons is independent of the atmospheric depth. (4) The integral energy spectrum can be expressed by the E - n within the energy region 250 Mev \({\leqslant}E{\leqslant}1\) Bev, and the value of n shifts from 0.7 to 1.2 w...