# Searches for Connections Between Dark Matter and Neutrinos with the IceCube High-Energy Starting Event Sample

## TL;DR

This paper investigates potential non-gravitational connections between dark matter and neutrinos by analyzing high-energy neutrino data from IceCube, aiming to detect signals of dark matter decay, annihilation, or scattering.

## Contribution

It introduces a novel search for dark matter-neutrino interactions using IceCube's high-energy starting events, exploring both decay/annihilation and scattering scenarios.

## Key findings

- No significant excess observed, setting limits on dark matter interactions.
- Constraints on dark matter decay and annihilation rates derived.
- Complementary limits enhance understanding of dark matter-neutrino links.

## Abstract

The nature of dark matter remains one of the most important open questions in physics. Although dark matter effects have only been observed gravitationally, the order-one ratio between conventional matter and dark matter hints to a non-gravitational link between them. In this contribution, we search for such a link using the IceCube high-energy starting event (HESE) sample, which contains some of the highest energy neutrinos ever observed. These are dominated by a yet unidentified high-energy diffuse astrophysical component. Using these events we look for evidence of an excess due to dark matter decay or annihilation, and also for a novel signature due to high-energy neutrinos scattering with dark matter. Finally, in this contribution, we will summarize and highlight the complementarity between the obtained limits for these two scenarios.