PT Journal
AU Pierre Auger Collaboration (Abreu, Pea
   Pastor, S
TI Search for Point-like Sources of Ultra-high Energy Neutrinos at the Pierre Auger Observatory and Improved Limit on the Diffuse Flux of Tau Neutrinos
SO Astrophysical Journal Letters
JI Astrophys. J. Lett.
PY 2012
BP L4 - 7pp
VL 755
IS 1
DI 10.1088/2041-8205/755/1/L4
LA English
DE astroparticle physics; cosmic rays; neutrinos; telescopes
AB The surface detector array of the Pierre Auger Observatory can detect neutrinos with energy E-nu between 10(17) eV and 10(20) eV from point-like sources across the sky south of +55 degrees and north of -65 degrees declinations. A search has been performed for highly inclined extensive air showers produced by the interaction of neutrinos of all flavors in the atmosphere (downward-going neutrinos), and by the decay of tau leptons originating from tau neutrino interactions in Earth's crust (Earth-skimming neutrinos). No candidate neutrinos have been found in data up to 2010 May 31. This corresponds to an equivalent exposure of similar to 3.5 years of a full surface detector array for the Earth-skimming channel and similar to 2 years for the downward-going channel. An improved upper limit on the diffuse flux of tau neutrinos has been derived. Upper limits on the neutrino flux from point-like sources have been derived as a function of the source declination. Assuming a differential neutrino flux k(PS) . E-nu(-2). from a point-like source, 90% confidence level upper limits for k(PS) at the level of approximate to 5x10(-7) and 2.5x10(-6) GeV cm(-2) s(-1) have been obtained over a broad range of declinations from the searches for Earth-skimming and downward-going neutrinos, respectively.
ER