On the Production of Secondary Ionizing Particles by Non-Ionizing Agents in Cosmic Radiation

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Abstract
Previous experiments have shown that the number of coincidences recorded with a vertical counter arrangement is a few percent larger when some absorber is placed above the counters than with the same absorber between them. The effect is also present when the experimental conditions are such as to exclude the possibility of its being due to shower-production by photons. It had been, therefore, ascribed either to penetrating non-ionizing particles (neutrons, neutrettos) producing ionizing secondary rays, or to ordinary photons producing penetrating secondary particles (mesotrons). The present experiments show that a minor part, if any, of the observed influence of the position of the absorber can be due to the above processes. The major part of it arises from the interference of already known phenomena like scattering, knock-on showers, showers from the air, etc. This conclusion refers only to experiments performed near sea level.