Abstract
We discuss the prospects for next generation neutrino telescopes, such as IceCube, to measure the flavor ratios of high-energy astrophysical neutrinos. The expected flavor ratios at the sources are and neutrino oscillations quickly transform these to The flavor ratios can be deduced from the relative rates of showers charged current, most charged current, and all flavors neutral current), muon tracks charged current only), and tau lepton lollipops and double bangs charged current only). The peak sensitivities for these interactions are at different neutrino energies, but the flavor ratios can be reliably connected by a reasonable measurement of the spectrum shape. Measurement of the astrophysical neutrino flavor ratios tests the assumed production mechanism and also provides a very long baseline test of a number of exotic scenarios, including neutrino decay, CPT violation, and small- oscillations to sterile neutrinos.
- Received 1 July 2003
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevD.68.093005
©2003 American Physical Society