Search

Mounting evidence suggests that the launching of collapsar jets is magnetically driven. Recent general relativistic magneto-hydrodynamic simulations of collapsars reveal that the jet is continuously loaded with baryons, owing to strong mixing with the cocoon. This results in a high photosphere at $\gtrsim 10^{12}$ cm. Consequently, collisionless internal shocks below the photosphere are disfavored, and the neutrino production in the deepest jet regions is prevented, in contrast to what has been assumed in the literature. We find that subphotospheric neutrino production could only take place in the presence of collisionless sub-shocks or magnetic reconnection. Efficient particle acceleration is not possible in the cocoon, at the cocoon-counter cocoon shock interface, or at the shock driven by the cocoon in the event of a jet halted in an extended envelope. These subphotospheric neutrinos have energy $E_\nu \lesssim 10^5$ GeV for initial jet magnetizations $\sigma_0=15$-$2000$. More than one neutrino and antineutrino event is expected to be observed in Hyper-Kamiokande and IceCube DeepCore for sources located at $z \lesssim \mathcal{O}(0.1)$. Because of their energy, these neutrinos do not contribute to the diffuse flux detected by the IceCube Neutrino Observatory. Our findings have implications on neutrino searches ranging from gamma-ray bursts to luminous fast blue optical transients., Comment: 28 pages, including 16 figures and 2 appendices. Minor changes in the text. Matches version published in PRD

The afterglow light curve of some gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) exhibits a sudden intensity jump about one hour after the prompt emission in the optical band. We model this feature through the late collision of two relativistic shells and investigate the corresponding high-energy neutrino emission, while contrasting our findings with the ones from the classic fireball model. We find that the total number of emitted neutrinos may increase by about an order of magnitude within a dynamical time when an optical jump occurs with respect to the standard afterglow scenario. By exploring the detection prospects with upcoming neutrino telescopes, we conclude that the detection of neutrinos with IceCube-Gen2 radio could enable us to explore and constrain the yet-to-be unveiled mechanism powering the optical jumps.Based on arXiv:2112.07690 [astro-ph.HE] and in collaboration with Irene Tamborra, Damien Bégué, Tetyana Pitik and Jochen Greiner.

Mounting evidence suggests that Luminous Fast Blue Optical Transients (LFBOTs) are powered by a compact object, launching an asymmetric and fast outflow responsible for the radiation observed in the ultraviolet, optical, infrared, radio, and X-ray bands. Proposed scenarios aiming to explain the electromagnetic emission include an inflated cocoon, surrounding a jet choked in the extended stellar envelope. In alternative, the observed radiation may arise from the disk formed by the delayed merger of a black hole with a Wolf-Rayet star. We explore the neutrino production in these scenarios, i.e. internal shocks in a choked jet and interaction between the outflow and the circumstellar medium (CSM). If observed on-axis, the choked jet provides the dominant contribution to the neutrino fluence. Intriguingly, the IceCube upper limit on the neutrino emission inferred from the closest LFBOT, AT2018cow, excludes a region of the parameter space otherwise allowed by electromagnetic observations. After correcting for the Eddington bias on the observation of cosmic neutrinos, we conclude that the emission from an on-axis choked jet and CSM interaction is compatible with the detection of two track-like neutrino events observed by the IceCube Neutrino Observatory in coincidence with AT2018cow, and otherwise considered to be of atmospheric origin. While the neutrino emission from LFBOTs does not constitute the bulk of the diffuse background of neutrinos observed by IceCube, detection prospects of nearby LFBOTs with IceCube and the upcoming IceCube-Gen2 are encouraging. Follow-up neutrino searches will be crucial for unravelling the mechanism powering this emergent transient class., 23 pages, including 9 figures and 1 appendix. Minor changes, matches version accepted for publication in ApJ

Some afterglow light curves of gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) exhibit very complex temporal and spectral features, such as a sudden intensity jump about one hour after the prompt emission in the optical band. We assume that this feature is due to the late collision of two relativistic shells and investigate the corresponding high-energy neutrino emission within a multi-messenger framework, while contrasting our findings with the ones from the classic afterglow model. For a constant density circumburst medium, the total number of emitted neutrinos can increase by about an order of magnitude when an optical jump occurs with respect to the self-similar afterglow scenario. By exploring the detection prospects with the IceCube Neutrino Observatory and future radio arrays such as IceCube-Gen2 radio, RNO-G and GRAND200k, as well as the POEMMA spacecraft, we conclude that the detection of neutrinos with IceCube-Gen2 radio could enable us to constrain the fraction of GRB afterglows with a jump as well as the properties of the circumburst medium. We also investigate the neutrino signal expected for the afterglows of GRB 100621A and a GRB 130427A-like burst with an optical jump. The detection of neutrinos from GRB afterglows could be crucial to explore the yet-to-be unveiled mechanism powering the optical jumps., Comment: 44 pages, including 13 figures and 3 appendices. Discussion expanded, conclusions unchanged. Matches version accepted for publication in JCAP