This project concerns aspects of theoretical nuclear and particle astrophysics. It is centered on the physics of neutrinos, elementary particles that are produced abundantly in stars and galaxies. These astrophysical neutrinos have been observed at Earth, and many more observations are expected for the near future. Theoretical research pursued in this project will help interpret the data. It will answer current open questions and pose new ones on the fundamental processes that take place in stars and on how the properties of neutrinos influence them. In addition, the PI will mentor students, thus enriching the community, and prepare junior researchers for future careers in industry and academia.
A major area of investigation in this project concerns the physics of 1-10 MeV neutrinos from core collapse supernovae, which is a strategic opportunity for upcoming neutrino detectors. It will be studied how, for a nearby star, a neutrino signal could be seen several hours before the collapse, and be used as an alert of the upcoming supernova for the astronomy and gravitational wave communities. The interplay of neutrinos and gravitational waves from a supernova will also be investigated, with emphasis on how joint analyses of these two messengers can improve our ability to learn about the dynamics of the core collapse and explosion of the star. A second thrust of the project is on interpreting the observed flux of TeV-PeV neutrinos from outside our galaxy, which is still of uncertain origin. Different possibilities will be examined, including a scenario where the neutrinos are produced by star-shredding black holes. The theme of neutrinos and black holes will also be explored in the context of the early universe, where primordial black holes could have produced an excess of neutrinos that could be measured in experiments today.
This project advances the objectives of "Windows on the Universe: the Era of Multi-Messenger Astrophysics", one of the 10 Big Ideas for Future NSF Investments.
This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.
