Simulation of imaging atmospheric Cherenkov telescopes with CORSIKA and sim_telarray

Imaging atmospheric Cherenkov telescopes (IACTs) have resulted in a break-through in very-high energy (VHE) gamma-ray astrophysics. While early IACT installations faced the problem of detecting any sources at all, current instruments are able to see many sources, often over more than two orders of magnitude in energy. As instruments and analysis methods have matured, the requirements for calibration and modelling of physical and instrumental effects have increased. In this article, a set of Monte Carlo simulation tools is described that attempts to include all relevant effects for IACTs in great detail but aims to achieve this in an efficient and flexible way. These tools were originally developed for the HEGRA IACT system and later adapted for the H.E.S.S. experiment. Their inherent flexibility to describe quite arbitrary IACT systems makes them also an ideal tool for evaluating the potential of future installations. It is in use for design studies of CTA and other projects.