Parametrization of the angular distribution of Cherenkov light in air showers

Luan Arbeletche, Vitor de Souza

Published 2020-07-27Version 1

The Cherenkov light produced in air showers largely contributes to the signal observed in gamma-ray and cosmic-ray observatories. Yet, no description of this phenomenon is available covering both small and large angular regions. To fill this gap, a parametrization of the angular distribution of Cherenkov photons is performed in terms of a physically motivated parametric function. Model parameters are constrained using simulated gamma-ray and proton showers with energies in the TeV to EeV region. As a result, a parametrization is obtained that overcomes in precision previous works. Results presented here can be used in the reconstruction of showers with imaging Cherenkov telescopes as well as the reconstruction of shower profiles in fluorescence detectors.