Work

Examination of the multitude of signals from the phase transition of a neutron star to a quark star

Year: 2022

Type: article

Abstract: The diverse nature of the signal resulting from the phase transition of a neutron star to a quark star and the corresponding astrophysical observations are studied in the present work. The phase transition process is initiated by a density change at the star's center that deconfines matter, followed by weak combustion to attain absolutely stable strange quark matter. The weak combustion results in the generation of huge neutrino-antineutrino pairs, which annihilate and deposit energy on the star's surface. Structural changes due to the energy loss result in the star's misalignment angle evolution and generate gravitational waves. The energy budget and time signature for the neutrino-antineutrino annihilation are compared with the observed isotropic energy for a short $\ensuremath{\gamma}$-ray burst. The misalignment angle evolves to align with the star's symmetry axis, which leads to the sudden increase or decrease of radio intensity from the pulsar. The corresponding gravitational wave emission, both continuous and burst, also has a unique signature pointing towards astrophysical phase transition.

Source: Physical Review C

DOI: 10.1103/physrevc.105.065807

Authors: Debojoti Kuzur, Ritam Mallick, R. Prasad, Shailendra Singh

Institution: Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Bhopal

Language: English

Topic: Pulsars and Gravitational Waves Research

Subfield: Astronomy and Astrophysics

Field: Physics and Astronomy

Domain: Physical Sciences

Open Access status: green

Funders: Inspire Foundation, Department of Science and Technology, Ministry of Science and Technology, India, Indian Institute of Science Education and Research Bhopal, Science and Engineering Research Board

Award: G4959412983