Two solar-mass compact stars: structure, composition, and cooling

TL;DR

This paper explores the internal structure, composition, and cooling mechanisms of massive neutron stars with hypernuclear and quark matter cores, emphasizing the conditions for stability and recent advances in understanding their thermal evolution.

Contribution

It presents new models of two-solar-mass neutron stars with hypernuclear and quark matter cores, highlighting the importance of the equation of state and color superconductivity for stability.

Findings

Stable configurations require a stiff hadronic equation of state.

Quark matter transition occurs at a few times nuclear saturation density.

Color superconductivity influences the cooling behavior of massive neutron stars.

Abstract

I discuss the structure and composition of massive (two solar-mass) neutron stars containing hypernuclear and deconfined quark matter in color superconducting states. Stable configurations featuring such matter are obtained if the equation of state of hadronic matter is stiff above the saturation density, the transition to quark matter takes place at a few times the nuclear saturation density, and the repulsive vector interactions in quark matter are substantial. I also discuss our recent progress in understanding the cooling of massive compact stars with color superconducting quark cores.