Inferring neutron stars crust properties from quiescent thermal emission

TL;DR

This paper uses observations of neutron star thermal emissions to constrain the properties of their crusts, providing insights into matter at high and lower densities through modeling of cooling curves.

Contribution

It introduces a method to infer neutron star crust composition and transport properties from recent thermal emission data, expanding understanding of dense matter physics.

Findings

Constraints on crust composition derived from observational data

Transport properties of neutron star crusts inferred from cooling models

Implications for matter behavior at different densities in neutron stars

Abstract

The observation of thermal emission from isolated neutron stars and the modeling of the corresponding cooling curves has been very useful to get information on the properties of matter at very high densities. More recently, the detection of quiescent thermal emission from neutron stars in low mass X-ray binary systems after active periods opened a new window to the physics of matter at lower densities. Here we analyze a few sources that have been recently monitored and we show how the models can be used to establish constraints on the crust composition and their transport properties, depending on the astrophysical scenarios assumed.