Muonic Component of Air Showers Measured by the KASCADE-Grande Experiment

The KASCADE-Grande experiment consists of a large array of scintillators for the detection of charged particles from extensive air showers in the primary energy range 10 16 eV ― 10 18 eV. In combination with the detectors of the KASCADE array it provides the means to investigate the composition in the expected transition region of galactic to extragalactic cosmic rays and the possible existence of a second knee in the total energy spectrum at E ∼ 10 17 eV caused by heavy primaries. For the goals described it is indispensable to reconstruct the shower sizes with highest accuracy. The reconstruction of the muonic component as well as the muon lateral distribution will be discussed and the precision and systematic uncertainties in the reconstruction of the muon number will be studied based on Monte Carlo simulations.