Neutrinos from the pulsar wind nebulae

Abstract

In the recent paper we calculated the $\gamma$-ray spectra from pulsar wind nebulae (PWNe), assuming that a significant amount of the pulsar rotational energy is converted into relativistic nuclei. These nuclei accelerate leptons which are responsible for most of the observed electromagnetic emission from PWNe. Small part of nuclei also interact with the matter of the supernova producing $\gamma$-rays, which can also contribute to the observed spectra of young nebulae. Here we calculate the spectra of neutrinos from the interaction of nuclei inside the nebula and the expected neutrino event rates in the 1 km$^2$ neutrino detector from: the Crab Nebula (PSR 0531+21), the Vela SNR (PSR 0833-45), G 343.1-2.3 (PSR 1706-44), MSH15-52 (PSR 1509-58), 3C58 (PSR J0205+6449), and CTB80 (PSR 1951+32). It is shown that only the Crab Nebula can produce the neutrino event rate above the sensitivity limit of the 1 km$^2$ neutrino detector, provided that nuclei take most of the rotational energy lost by the pulsar. The neutrino event rate expected from the Vela SNR is comparable to that from the Crab Nebula but these neutrinos are less energetic and emitted from a much larger region on the sky. Therefore it may be difficult to subtract the Vela SNR signal from the higher background of the atmospheric neutrinos.