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SYMD: Symposium SMuK Dissertation Prize 2021

SYMD 1: Symposium SMuK Dissertation Prize 2021

SYMD 1.3: Invited Talk

Monday, August 30, 2021, 15:00–15:30, Audimax

Astrophysical Tau Neutrinos in IceCube — •Juliana Stachurska — Massachusetts Institute of Technology

The IceCube neutrino observatory has measured the astrophysical neutrino flux, but the majority of its sources remain unknown. Determining the neutrino flavor composition, which carries information on the environments at astrophysical neutrino sources, requires sensitivity to each neutrino flavor: electron, muon, and the long-elusive tau. High-energy tau neutrinos can create a unique double cascade signature in IceCube, where the first cascade is created by the tau neutrino interaction and the second by the subsequent tau decay.

In this talk, I will describe the analysis developed to identify double cascades and present the first tau neutrino candidates. I will discuss the a posteriori analysis carried out to quantify the probabilities that these events were induced by tau neutrinos. Lastly, I will present the first measurement of the astrophysical neutrino flavor composition with sensitivity to all three neutrino flavors.