Gravitomagnetic tidal currents in rotating neutron stars

TL;DR

This paper investigates how rotating neutron stars respond dynamically to gravitomagnetic tidal fields using post-Newtonian gravity, revealing the role of zero-frequency modes and estimating the impact of tidal currents near mergers.

Contribution

It provides a novel post-Newtonian analysis of gravitomagnetic tidal responses, clarifying the role of zero-frequency modes and estimating the magnitude of tidal currents in neutron stars.

Findings

Tidal currents are driven by an unbalanced Lorentz-like force within the star.

Zero-frequency g-modes and r-modes are crucial in establishing tidal currents.

Velocity perturbations can reach kilometers per second near neutron star mergers.

Abstract

It was recently revealed that a rotating compact body responds dynamically when it is subjected to a gravitomagnetic tidal field, even when this field is idealized as time-independent. The dynamical response is characterized by time-changing internal currents, and it was suspected to originate from zero-frequency g-modes and r-modes driven by the tidal forces. In this paper we provide additional insights into the phenomenon by examining the tidal response of a rotating body within the framework of post-Newtonian gravity. This approach allows us to develop an intuitive picture for the phenomenon, which relies on the close analogy between post-Newtonian gravity and Maxwell's theory of electromagnetism. In this picture, the coupling between the gravitomagnetic tidal field and the body's rotational velocity is naturally expected to produce an unbalanced Lorentz-like force within the body, and it is this force that is responsible for the tidal currents. The simplicity of the fluid equations in the post-Newtonian setting allows us to provide a complete description of the zero-frequency modes and demonstrate their precise role in the establishment of the tidal currents. We estimate the amplitude of these currents, and find that for neutron-star binaries of relevance to LIGO, the scale of the velocity perturbation is measured in kilometers per second when the rotation period is comparable to 100 milliseconds. This estimate indicates that the tidal currents may have a significant impact on the physics of neutron stars near merger.