Searching for Pseudo-Dirac neutrinos from Astrophysical sources in IceCube data

Abstract

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 $\delta m^2$, 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 $\delta m^2\in [2.1\times 10^{-21}-2.0\times 10^{-16}]$ eV${}^2$ with $\ge 90\%$ 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 $\delta m^2\in [1.1\times 10^{-21}-3.0\times 10^{-16}]$ eV${}^2$ at $\ge 90\%$ CL.

Comments: 18 pages, 10 figures, Version accepted for publication in EPJC