Hidden Neutrino Active Galaxy Candidates: Prospects for Catalog and Stacking Searches with IceCube, IceCube-Gen2, and KM3NeT
Abstract
In high-energy neutrino astrophysics, the identification of high-energy neutrino sources is a central goal, and jet-quiet active galactic nuclei (AGNs) have emerged as promising candidates. For this purpose, we present a theory-guided, intrinsic X-ray selected sample of hidden neutrino AGN candidates consisting of $28$ X-ray bright AGNs (X-HiNAC), combining the {\em Swift}/BAT and BASS surveys with dedicated {\em NuSTAR} observations and spectral analyses. We compile their intrinsic X-ray fluxes, spectral properties, luminosity distances, and supermassive black hole masses, to provide a coherent sample for neutrino source searches. The sample is physically motivated but remains model independent given that the neutrino flux is proportional to the intrinsic X-ray flux. Using the magnetically powered corona model, we also demonstrate the prospects for individual-source and stacking searches with IceCube-Gen2 and KM3NeT. We identify promising individual targets and find that stacking the remaining sources, excluding NGC 1068, could yield a 5σ detection within ∼ 5−15 years under favorable model assumptions at the current and upcoming neutrino observatories. We highlight systematic uncertainties in the adopted source parameters, particularly the black hole masses, for which different measurement techniques can yield estimates differing by up to an order of magnitude. Such uncertainties can significantly affect the predicted neutrino emission, motivating more precise black hole mass measurements and improved broadband X-ray observations. Our findings motivate improved multiwavelength characterization of nearby AGNs and provide a guide for investigating their role as high-energy neutrino sources.
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BibTeX
@misc{mukhopadhyay2026hidden,
title = {{Hidden Neutrino Active Galaxy Candidates: Prospects for Catalog and Stacking Searches with IceCube, IceCube-Gen2, and KM3NeT}},
author = {Mainak Mukhopadhyay and Jose Alonso Carpio and Heer Patel and Ali Kheirandish and Kohta Murase},
howpublished = {arXiv},
year = {2026},
month = nov,
doi = {10.48550/arxiv.2611.00198},
eprint = {2611.00198},
archivePrefix = {arXiv},
url = {https://arxiv.org/abs/2611.00198},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - Hidden Neutrino Active Galaxy Candidates: Prospects for Catalog and Stacking Searches with IceCube, IceCube-Gen2, and KM3NeT
AU - Mainak Mukhopadhyay
AU - Jose Alonso Carpio
AU - Heer Patel
AU - Ali Kheirandish
AU - Kohta Murase
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/11/01
PB - arXiv
DO - 10.48550/arxiv.2611.00198
UR - https://arxiv.org/abs/2611.00198
AB - In high-energy neutrino astrophysics, the identification of high-energy neutrino sources is a central goal, and jet-quiet active galactic nuclei (AGNs) have emerged as promising candidates. For this purpose, we present a theory-guided, intrinsic X-ray selected sample of hidden neutrino AGN candidates consisting of $28$ X-ray bright AGNs (X-HiNAC), combining the {\em Swift}/BAT and BASS surveys with dedicated {\em NuSTAR} observations and spectral analyses. We compile their intrinsic X-ray fluxes, spectral properties, luminosity distances, and supermassive black hole masses, to provide a coherent sample for neutrino source searches. The sample is physically motivated but remains model independent given that the neutrino flux is proportional to the intrinsic X-ray flux. Using the magnetically powered corona model, we also demonstrate the prospects for individual-source and stacking searches with IceCube-Gen2 and KM3NeT. We identify promising individual targets and find that stacking the remaining sources, excluding NGC 1068, could yield a 5σ detection within ∼ 5−15 years under favorable model assumptions at the current and upcoming neutrino observatories. We highlight systematic uncertainties in the adopted source parameters, particularly the black hole masses, for which different measurement techniques can yield estimates differing by up to an order of magnitude. Such uncertainties can significantly affect the predicted neutrino emission, motivating more precise black hole mass measurements and improved broadband X-ray observations. Our findings motivate improved multiwavelength characterization of nearby AGNs and provide a guide for investigating their role as high-energy neutrino sources.
ER -