Detecting the Next Galactic Core-Collapse Supernova with TRIDENT

Large neutrino telescopes offer unique opportunities in detecting neutrinos from the next core-collapse supernova (CCSN), following the first and only detection in 1987. The TRopIcal DEep-sea Neutrino Telescope (TRIDENT) is a next-generation neutrino telescope to be built in the South China Sea. Although primarily designed for high-energy neutrino detection, TRIDENT could register a high flux of MeV-scale neutrinos from a nearby CCSN, causing a sudden rise of noise level from inverse beta decay (IBD) events induced by electron antineutrinos from the CCSN. TRIDENT’s pixelized digital optical modules allow for a high-purity isolation of coincident pairs of signals from the prompt positron and delayed neutron events associated with IBD. The presence of chlorine in seawater is especially expected to boost the detection efficiency of neutrons. In this work, we present the study on TRIDENT's CCSN detection efficiency and alert time latency for a variety of CCSN models and distances.