Search for an eV-Scale Sterile Neutrino Using Improved High-Energy ν<sub>μ</sub> Event Reconstruction in IceCube


Abbasi R., Ackermann M., Adams J., Agarwalla S. K., Aguilar J. A., Ahlers M., ...Daha Fazla

PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS, cilt.133, sa.20, 2024 (SCI-Expanded, Scopus) identifier identifier identifier identifier

  • Yayın Türü: Makale / Tam Makale
  • Cilt numarası: 133 Sayı: 20
  • Basım Tarihi: 2024
  • Doi Numarası: 10.1103/physrevlett.133.201804
  • Dergi Adı: PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS
  • Derginin Tarandığı İndeksler: Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED), Scopus, Academic Search Premier, Aerospace Database, Chemical Abstracts Core, Compendex, INSPEC, zbMATH, DIALNET, Nature Index
  • Orta Doğu Teknik Üniversitesi Adresli: Evet

Özet

This Letter presents the result of a 3 + 1 sterile neutrino search using 10.7 yr of IceCube data. We analyze atmospheric muon neutrinos that traverse the Earth with energies ranging from 0.5 to 100 TeV, incorporating significant improvements in modeling neutrino flux and detector response compared to earlier studies. Notably, for the first time, we categorize data into starting and throughgoing events, distinguishing neutrino interactions with vertices inside or outside the instrumented volume, to improve energy resolution. The best-fit point for a 3 + 1 model is found to be at sin(2)(2 theta(24)) = 0.16 and Delta m(41)(2) = 3.5 eV(2), which agrees with previous iterations of this Letter. The result is consistent with the null hypothesis of no sterile neutrinos with a p value of 3.1%.