Search for an eV-Scale Sterile Neutrino Using Improved High-Energy 𝜈𝜇 Event Reconstruction in IceCube
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
11-2024
Publisher
American Physical Society
Source Publication
Physical Review Letters
Source ISSN
0031-9007
Original Item ID
DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.133.201804
Abstract
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 sin2(2𝜃24)=0.16 and Δ𝑚241 =3.5 eV2, 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%.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Recommended Citation
Andeen, Karen, "Search for an eV-Scale Sterile Neutrino Using Improved High-Energy 𝜈𝜇 Event Reconstruction in IceCube" (2024). Physics Faculty Research and Publications. 191.
https://epublications.marquette.edu/physics_fac/191
Comments
Physical Review Letters, Vol. 133, No. 20 (December 2024). DOI.