The Sun can occasionally accelerate particles to become solar energetic particles, some of which
may collide with the Earth’s atmosphere and produce secondary air showers that ground-based
neutron monitors can detect. This work investigates the Princess Sirindhorn Neutron Monitor
(PSNM) response to solar neutrons originating from solar activity, such as solar flares and coronal
mass ejections. The PSNM, located at an altitude of 2560 m near the equator with a high
geomagnetic cutoff rigidity of 16.7 GV, is particularly suited for this study, as it can potentially
detect lower energy (sub-GeV) solar neutrons against a background of higher energy charged
cosmic rays because neutrons are not affected by the geomagnetic field. Furthermore, since
the start of operations in 2007, PSNM has deployed bare counters without surrounding lead or
polyethylene. These bare counters are more sensitive to low-energy atmospheric neutrons and
may be used to distinguish showers from solar neutrons versus those from Galactic cosmic rays.
ions. This research employs Monte Carlo simulations to model the interactions of solar neutrons
with the Earth’s atmosphere and the response of PSNM to solar neutrons. We simulate neutron
showers across a range of energies at different zenith angles. This study provides useful insights
into the capabilities of neutron monitors, together with bare counters, for solar physics research
and contributes to advancing our understanding of solar neutron detection.