An All-Sky Search for Three Flavors of Neutrinos from Gamma-Ray Bursts with the IceCube Neutrino Observatory

TL;DR

This study conducted the first all-sky search for electron, muon, and tau neutrinos from gamma-ray bursts using IceCube, setting limits that challenge existing models of neutrino and cosmic ray production.

Contribution

It introduces a comprehensive three-year all-sky search for all neutrino flavors from GRBs with IceCube, including shower-like detection methods for the first time.

Findings

Detected five low-significance neutrino events correlated with GRBs.

Results are consistent with atmospheric background expectations.

Limits set by the search constrain current models of neutrino and cosmic ray production.

Abstract

We present the results and methodology of a search for neutrinos produced in the decay of charged pions created in interactions between protons and gamma-rays during the prompt emission of 807 gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) over the entire sky. This three-year search is the first in IceCube for shower-like Cherenkov light patterns from electron, muon, and tau neutrinos correlated with GRBs. We detect five low-significance events correlated with five GRBs. These events are consistent with the background expectation from atmospheric muons and neutrinos. The results of this search in combination with those of IceCube's four years of searches for track-like Cherenkov light patterns from muon neutrinos correlated with Northern-Hemisphere GRBs produce limits that tightly constrain current models of neutrino and ultra high energy cosmic ray production in GRB fireballs.