High energy neutrinos from the Sun

M. Masip

Published 2017-06-05Version 1

High-energy neutrinos are secondary particles produced in the collisions of cosmic rays with matter. These collisions may take place in the dense site where cosmic rays are accelerated, in the interstellar and the intergalactic medium where they propagate, or as cosmic rays enter the Earth's atmosphere. We show that our Sun is also a main source of high-energy neutrinos. In particular, at 0.1--100 TeV the neutrino flux from the Sun at a zenith angle of 30^o is over ten times larger than the atmospheric one. The origin of this flux are the cosmic rays of E>1 TeV that reach the Sun's surface. Primary cosmic rays find there a low-density environment (much thinner than our atmosphere) where secondary pions, kaons and muons can decay and give neutrinos that then cross the Sun and reach the Earth. The flux that we obtain has a distinct spectrum and flavor composition, and it could be detected in a dedicated search by current neutrino telescopes. Its discovery and study would improve our understanding of the magnetic field and the internal structure of the Sun.