THE POTENTIAL OF GROUND-BASED ARRAYS OF IMAGING ATMOSPHERIC CHERENKOVTELESCOPES .1. DETERMINATION OF SHOWER PARAMETERS

The performance of the arrays of imaging atmospheric Cherenkov telesco pes (IACTs) for detection of greater than or equal to 100GeV gamma-ray s is discussed. The effective detection area of stereoscopic multi-IAC T systems is determined essentially by the total geometrical area of t he array which may be covered by independent standard greater than or equal to 3 telescope 'cells' with a linear size of about 100 m. We hav e investigated the characteristics of a quadrangular 100 x 100 m(2) 'c ell' with four '100 GeV' class IACTs in its corners which is recommend ed as an optimal design for the future IACT arrays. The idea of the 'c ell' makes straightforward the study of the characteristics of IACT ar rays. The conclusions obtained, concerning in particular the angular a nd energy resolutions, and the cosmic ray background rejection efficie ncy, are rather general and, do not depend on the specific configurati on of the array. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science B.V.