The Residual Ionization in Air at New High Pressures, and its Relation to the Cosmic Penetrating Radiation

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Abstract
Measurements of the residual ionization in air were made with a new spherical chamber of 13.8 liters capacity at pressures up to 170 atm., at an altitude of 5400 ft. Lead and water shields were used. The slopes of the ionization-pressure curves continued to decrease at the higher pressures, becoming zero in the neighborhood of 130 to 140 atm. The ionization-pressure relation and the effects of shielding are explained on the basis of the production of ions solely by secondary radiations excited in the walls of the vessel by the cosmic penetrating radiation. The theoretical consequences of such an assumption are discussed.