LS I +61 303 as a potential neutrino source on the light of MAGIC results

Abstract

Very high energy $γ$-rays have recently been detected from the microquasar LS I +61 303 using the MAGIC telescope. A phenomenological study on the concomitant neutrinos that would be radiated if the $γ$-ray emission is hadronic in origin is herein presented. Neutrino oscillations are considered, and the expected number of events in a km-scale detector such as ICECUBE is computed under different assumptions including orbital periodicity and modulation, as well as different precision in the modeling of the detector. We argue that the upper limits already imposed on the neutrino emission of LS I +61 303 using AMANDA-II and the forthcoming measurements by ICECUBE may significantly constrain -in an independent and unbiased way- the $γ$-ray to neutrino flux ratio, and thus the possibility of a hadronic origin of the $γ$-rays. The viability of hadronic models based on wind-jet interactions in the LS + 61 303 system after MAGIC measurements is discussed.