Limits on hadronic cosmic ray production by young pulsars

Since the discovery of supernova 1987A (Shelton) several authors ^1,2 have noted that it may provide an excellent opportunity to observe the cosmic ray output of a young pulsar through the 'beam dump' that the supernova ejecta provide. It has been suggested³ that neutrino emission from p-p collisions is possible immediately, and that ultra-high energy γ-ray emission might be possible after several months, when the supernova remnant becomes transparent to them. In this letter we argue that the cosmic abundances of Li, Be and B set significant constraints on the cosmic ray proton production in the young (t≤1 yr) remnant, and, in particular, rule out neutrinos from shock-accelerated protons in the ejecta at currently detectable levels.