The electron-proton abundance ratio in cosmic rays

Abstract

An attempt has been made to understand the electron-proton abundance ratio in cosmic rays observed near the earth. After correction for interplanetary and interstellar effects, the ratio has been obtained near the 'source' boundary. A leaky source model which can describe consistently all components of the cosmic radiation was then used to obtain the abundance inside the 'source'. Possible effects of injection and acceleration processes on the ratio are examined. From these considerations the most plausible mechanism seems to be injection of electrons and protons by hot gas, and their acceleration by a mixture of Fermi and betatron processes; this is followed by leakage of particles into interstellar space in a rigidity dependent fashion.