Generation of neutrons by cosmic-ray muons in various materials

Results of studying the neutron background induced by cosmic-ray muons are presented. Neutron generation rate is calculated for different experimental detectors and materials using the Geant4 software package (Monte Carlo particle transport toolkit). The dependence of the neutron generation rate on atomic weight and the energy of muons is obtained. The influence of the surrounding soil on the neutron generation rate in the volume of a scintillation detector is studied.