Observation of Seven Astrophysical Tau Neutrino Candidates with IceCube

We report on a measurement of astrophysical tau neutrinos with 9.7 yr of IceCube data. Using convolutional neural networks trained on images derived from simulated events, seven candidate ν_{τ} events were found with visible energies ranging from roughly 20 TeV to 1 PeV and a median expected parent ν_{τ} energy of about 200 TeV. Considering backgrounds from astrophysical and atmospheric neutrinos, and muons from π^{±}/K^{±} decays in atmospheric air showers, we obtain a total estimated background of about 0.5 events, dominated by non-ν_{τ} astrophysical neutrinos. Thus, we rule out the absence of astrophysical ν_{τ} at the 5σ level. The measured astrophysical ν_{τ} flux is consistent with expectations based on previously published IceCube astrophysical neutrino flux measurements and neutrino oscillations.

Searches for beyond-standard-model physics with astroparticle physics instruments

Many instruments for astroparticle physics are primarily geared towards multi-messenger astrophysics, to study the origin of cosmic rays and to understand high-energy astrophysical processes. Since these instruments observe the Universe at extreme energies and in kinematic ranges not accessible at accelerators these experiments provide also unique and complementary opportunities to search for particles and physics beyond the standard model of particle physics. In particular, the reach of IceCube, Fermi and KATRIN to search for and constrain Dark Matter, Axions, heavy Big Bang relics, sterile neutrinos and Lorentz invariance violation will be discussed. The contents of this article are based on material presented at the Humboldt-Kolleg 'Clues to a mysterious Universe-exploring the interface of particle, gravity and quantum physics' in June 2022. This article is part of the theme issue 'The particle-gravity frontier'.

Search for Unstable Sterile Neutrinos with the IceCube Neutrino Observatory

We present a search for an unstable sterile neutrino by looking for a resonant signal in eight years of atmospheric ν_{μ} data collected from 2011 to 2019 at the IceCube Neutrino Observatory. Both the (stable) three-neutrino and the 3+1 sterile neutrino models are disfavored relative to the unstable sterile neutrino model, though with p values of 2.8% and 0.81%, respectively, we do not observe evidence for 3+1 neutrinos with neutrino decay. The best-fit parameters for the sterile neutrino with decay model from this study are Δm_{41}^{2}=6.7_{-2.5}^{+3.9}  eV^{2}, sin^{2}2θ_{24}=0.33_{-0.17}^{+0.20}, and g^{2}=2.5π±1.5π, where g is the decay-mediating coupling. The preferred regions of the 3+1+decay model from short-baseline oscillation searches are excluded at 90% C.L.

Strong Constraints on Neutrino Nonstandard Interactions from TeV-Scale ν_{μ} Disappearance at IceCube

We report a search for nonstandard neutrino interactions (NSI) using eight years of TeV-scale atmospheric muon neutrino data from the IceCube Neutrino Observatory. By reconstructing incident energies and zenith angles for atmospheric neutrino events, this analysis presents unified confidence intervals for the NSI parameter ε_{μτ}. The best-fit value is consistent with no NSI at a p value of 25.2%. With a 90% confidence interval of -0.0041≤ε_{μτ}≤0.0031 along the real axis and similar strength in the complex plane, this result is the strongest constraint on any NSI parameter from any oscillation channel to date.

Tau Appearance from High-Energy Neutrino Interactions

High-energy muon and electron neutrinos yield a non-negligible flux of tau neutrinos as they propagate through Earth. In this Letter, we address the impact of this additional component in the PeV and EeV energy regimes for the first time. Above 300 TeV, this contribution is predicted to be significantly larger than the atmospheric background, and it alters current and future neutrino telescopes' capabilities to discover a cosmic tau-neutrino flux. Further, we demonstrate that Earth-skimming neutrino experiments, designed to observe tau neutrinos, will be sensitive to cosmogenic neutrinos even in extreme scenarios without a primary tau-neutrino component.

Lorentz Symmetry and High-Energy Neutrino Astronomy

The search of the violation of Lorentz symmetry, or Lorentz violation (LV), is an active research field. The effects of LV are expected to be very small, and special systems are often used to search it. High-energy astrophysical neutrinos offer a unique system to search signatures of LV, due to the three factors: high neutrino energy, long propagation distance, and the presence of quantum mechanical interference. In this brief review, we introduce tests of LV and summarize existing searches of LV, using atmospheric and astrophysical neutrinos.

Detection of a particle shower at the Glashow resonance with IceCube

The Glashow resonance describes the resonant formation of a W^- boson during the interaction of a high-energy electron antineutrino with an electron¹, peaking at an antineutrino energy of 6.3 petaelectronvolts (PeV) in the rest frame of the electron. Whereas this energy scale is out of reach for currently operating and future planned particle accelerators, natural astrophysical phenomena are expected to produce antineutrinos with energies beyond the PeV scale. Here we report the detection by the IceCube neutrino observatory of a cascade of high-energy particles (a particle shower) consistent with being created at the Glashow resonance. A shower with an energy of 6.05 ± 0.72 PeV (determined from Cherenkov radiation in the Antarctic Ice Sheet) was measured. Features consistent with the production of secondary muons in the particle shower indicate the hadronic decay of a resonant W^- boson, confirm that the source is astrophysical and provide improved directional localization. The evidence of the Glashow resonance suggests the presence of electron antineutrinos in the astrophysical flux, while also providing further validation of the standard model of particle physics. Its unique signature indicates a method of distinguishing neutrinos from antineutrinos, thus providing a way to identify astronomical accelerators that produce neutrinos via hadronuclear or photohadronic interactions, with or without strong magnetic fields. As such, knowledge of both the flavour (that is, electron, muon or tau neutrinos) and charge (neutrino or antineutrino) will facilitate the advancement of neutrino astronomy.

eV-Scale Sterile Neutrino Search Using Eight Years of Atmospheric Muon Neutrino Data from the IceCube Neutrino Observatory

The results of a 3+1 sterile neutrino search using eight years of data from the IceCube Neutrino Observatory are presented. A total of 305 735 muon neutrino events are analyzed in reconstructed energy-zenith space to test for signatures of a matter-enhanced oscillation that would occur given a sterile neutrino state with a mass-squared differences between 0.01 and 100  eV^{2}. The best-fit point is found to be at sin^{2}(2θ_{24})=0.10 and Δm_{41}^{2}=4.5  eV^{2}, which is consistent with the no sterile neutrino hypothesis with a p value of 8.0%.

Characteristics of the Diffuse Astrophysical Electron and Tau Neutrino Flux with Six Years of IceCube High Energy Cascade Data

We report on the first measurement of the astrophysical neutrino flux using particle showers (cascades) in IceCube data from 2010-2015. Assuming standard oscillations, the astrophysical neutrinos in this dedicated cascade sample are dominated (∼90%) by electron and tau flavors. The flux, observed in the sensitive energy range from 16 TeV to 2.6 PeV, is consistent with a single power-law model as expected from Fermi-type acceleration of high energy particles at astrophysical sources. We find the flux spectral index to be γ=2.53±0.07 and a flux normalization for each neutrino flavor of ϕ_{astro}=1.66_{-0.27}^{+0.25} at E_{0}=100  TeV, in agreement with IceCube's complementary muon neutrino results and with all-neutrino flavor fit results. In the measured energy range we reject spectral indices γ≤2.28 at ≥3σ significance level. Because of high neutrino energy resolution and low atmospheric neutrino backgrounds, this analysis provides the most detailed characterization of the neutrino flux at energies below ∼100  TeV compared to previous IceCube results. Results from fits assuming more complex neutrino flux models suggest a flux softening at high energies and a flux hardening at low energies (p value ≥0.06). The sizable and smooth flux measured below ∼100  TeV remains a puzzle. In order to not violate the isotropic diffuse gamma-ray background as measured by the Fermi Large Area Telescope, it suggests the existence of astrophysical neutrino sources characterized by dense environments which are opaque to gamma rays.

Inferring the Flavor of High-Energy Astrophysical Neutrinos at Their Sources

The sources and production mechanisms of high-energy astrophysical neutrinos are largely unknown. A promising opportunity for progress lies in the study of neutrino flavor composition, i.e., the proportion of each flavor in the flux of neutrinos, which reflects the physical conditions at the sources. To seize it, we introduce a Bayesian method that infers the flavor composition at the neutrino sources based on the flavor composition measured at Earth. We find that the present data from the IceCube neutrino telescope favor neutrino production via the decay of high-energy pions and rule out production via the decay of neutrons. In the future, improved measurements of flavor composition and mixing parameters may single out the production mechanism with high significance.