Ultra-High Energy Neutrinos at the Pierre Auger Observatory

THE PIERRE AUGER COLLABORATION, B. WUNDHEILER

Advances in High Energy Physics

Hindawi Publishing Corporation

Año: 2012 p. 1 - 36

1687-7357

The observation of ultra-high energy neutrinos (UHEν s) has be- come a priority in experimental astroparticle physics. UHEν s can be detected with a variety of techniques. In particular, neutrinos can in- teract in the atmosphere (downward-going ν ) or in the Earth crust (Earth-skimming ν ), producing air showers that can be observed with arrays of detectors at the ground. With the Surface Detector Array of the Pierre Auger Observatory we can detect these types of cascades. The distinguishing signature for neutrino events is the presence of very inclined showers produced close to the ground (i.e. after having tra- versed a large amount of atmosphere). In this work we review the procedure and criteria established to search for UHEν s in the data collected with the ground array of the Pierre Auger Observatory. This includes Earth-skimming as well as downward-going neutrinos. No neutrino candidates have been found, which allows us to place com- petitive limits to the diffuse flux of UHEν s in the EeV range and above.