HARP-CDP hadroproduction data: Comparison with FLUKA and GEANT4 simulations

TL;DR

This paper compares experimental hadroproduction data for secondary particles with FLUKA and GEANT4 simulations, highlighting areas of agreement and discrepancies to guide future modeling improvements.

Contribution

It provides a detailed comparison of FLUKA and GEANT4 simulations against experimental data for proton and pion interactions with various nuclei, identifying strengths and weaknesses.

Findings

Production cross-sections are generally within a factor of two.

FLUKA performs better than GEANT4 in overall simulation accuracy.

Certain interaction regions require improved modeling.

Abstract

We report on the comparison of production characteristics of secondary protons and charged pions in the interactions of protons and charged pions with momentum between 3 GeV/c and 15 GeV/c with beryllium, copper, and tantalum nuclei, with simulations by the FLUKA and Geant4 Monte Carlo tool kits. Overall production cross-sections are reasonably well reproduced, within factors of two. In more detail, there are areas with poor agreement that are unsatisfactory and call for modelling improvements. Overall, the current FLUKA simulation fares better than the current Geant4 simulation.