Neutrino search fromγ-ray bursts during the prompt and X-ray afterglow phases using 10 years of IceCube public data

Abstract

Neutrino emission from γ-ray bursts (GRBs) has been sought for a long time, and stringent limits on the most accredited GRB emission models have been obtained from IceCube. Multiwavelength GRB observations of the last decades have improved our knowledge of the GRB emission parameters, such as the Lorentz factor and the luminosity, which can vary from one GRB to another by several orders of magnitude. Empirical correlations among such parameters have been identified during the prompt phase, with direct implications on GRB models. In this work, we use the PSLab open-access code, developed for IceCube data analyses, to search for individual neutrino emission from the prompt and afterglow phases of selected GRBs, and for stacking emission from the ensemble of such GRBs. For the afterglow phase, we focus on GRBs with X-ray flares and plateaus in particular. While past stacking searches assumed the same GRB fluence at Earth, we present a stacking scheme based on physically motivated GRB weights. Moreover, we conceive a new methodology for the prompt phase that uses the empirical correlations to infer the GRB luminosity and Lorentz factor, when redshift measurements are not available. We do not observe any significant neutrino excess. Hence, we set constraints on the GRB neutrino fluxes and on relevant GRB parameters, including the magnetic field in the jet. Notably, the baryon loading is found to be less than ten for typical GRB jets.

Limits on Neutrino Emission from GRB 221009A from MeV to PeV Using the IceCube Neutrino Observatory

“…Which (if any) of these mechanisms leads to detectable neutrino emission is uncertain, so it is imperative to consider different time windows and energy spectra of GRB neutrino emission in dedicated searches. Previous searches of highenergy neutrino emission carried out by IceCube have so far yielded upper limits that imposed constraints on optimistic neutrino emission models (Abbasi et al 2009a(Abbasi et al , 2012a(Abbasi et al , 2022aAartsen et al 2015Aartsen et al , 2016aAartsen et al , 2017aAbbott et al 2017); see also Lucarelli et al (2022).…”

Multi-messenger High-Energy Astrophysics results

“…The non-observation of neutrinos from GRBs by IceCube [79][80][81] disfavors these powerful yet mysterious sources as accelerators of UHECR sources. In the frame of a single-zone fireball model and considering protons, the neutrino limits on the prompt phase imply that the fraction of total kinetic energy in non-thermal protons is less than 10% or that the magnetization is so high that protons lose all their energy before producing high-energy enough neutrinos [82]. Nonetheless, such limit is relaxed by assuming acceleration of heavy nuclei rather than protons and/or models of multiple production zones of neutrinos and gamma rays.…”

GRB 221009A: Spectral Signatures Based on ALPs Candidates

“…There have been several searches for neutrinos correlated to GRBs by instruments such as IceCube (Aartsen et al 2017;Abbasi et al 2021Abbasi et al , 2022IceCube Collaboration et al 2023), Amanda (Achterberg et al 2007(Achterberg et al , 2008 and Antares (Albert et al 2017(Albert et al , 2021ANTARES Collaboration et al 2021) that have resulted in no detections and in strong constraints on the single-zone fireball models of neutrinos and the production of ultrahigh-energy cosmic rays (UHECRs) during the precursor, prompt, and afterglow phases (Lucarelli et al 2023). Despite being considered likely sources of UHECRs, due to their large power output, the results of searches for neutrinos correlated with GRBs have been discouraging.…”