2024/06/10 by Khushboo Dixit, Dixit, Khushboo, Luis Salvador Miranda +3 · 1 citation
Physics and Astronomy · #Astrophysics and Cosmic Phenomena #Dark Matter and Cosmic Phenomena #Neutrino Physics Research
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.2406.06476
We analyze IceCube public data from its IC86 configuration, namely PSTracks event selection, to search for pseudo-Dirac signatures in high-energy neutrinos from astrophysical sources. Neutrino flux from astrophysical sources is reduced in the pseudo-Dirac scenario due to the conversion of active-to-sterile neutrinos as compared to the neutrino oscillation scenario of only three active neutrinos over astrophysical distances. We fit IceCube data using astrophysical flux models for four point-like sources in both scenarios and constrain the active-sterile mass-square-difference in the absence of any evidence for the pseudo-Dirac scenario. We present the exclusion regions for the common mass-squared difference δm2, inducing active-sterile oscillations, for all three neutrino flavors. This includes results from individual sources as well as from a stacking analysis that combines data from the four sources. Our findings indicate that the exclusion region is δm2 ∈ [2.1× 10-21 - 2.0× 10-16] eV2 with ≥ 90% confidence level (CL) significance for neutrino energies ranging from 0.5 TeV to 1 PeV. When we extend the energy range down to 0.1 TeV, the exclusion region broadens to δm2 ∈ [1.1 × 10-21 - 3.0× 10-16] eV2 at ≥ 90% CL.