Extended I-Love relations for slowly rotating neutron stars

TL;DR

This paper computes four Love numbers for slowly rotating neutron stars with realistic equations of state, discovering nearly equation-of-state independent relations that extend the I-Love-Q universality, enhancing gravitational-wave data analysis.

Contribution

It introduces new calculations of rotational-tidal Love numbers and establishes nearly universal relations linking these to the moment of inertia, broadening the scope of I-Love-Q relations.

Findings

Discovered nearly EOS-independent relations between Love numbers and moment of inertia.

Computed Love numbers for realistic neutron star equations of state.

Confirmed general-relativistic results with post-Newtonian formulas in the weak-field limit.

Abstract

Observations of gravitational waves from inspiralling neutron star binaries---such as GW170817---can be used to constrain the nuclear equation of state by placing bounds on stellar tidal deformability. For slowly rotating neutron stars, the response to a weak quadrupolar tidal field is characterized by four internal-structure-dependent constants called "Love numbers." The tidal Love numbers $k_2^\text{el}$ and $k_2^\text{mag}$ measure the tides raised by the gravitoelectric and gravitomagnetic components of the applied field, and the rotational-tidal Love numbers $\mathfrak{f}^\text{o}$ and $\mathfrak{k}^\text{o}$ measure those raised by couplings between the applied field and the neutron star spin. In this work we compute these four Love numbers for perfect fluid neutron stars with realistic equations of state. We discover (nearly) equation-of-state independent relations between the rotational-tidal Love numbers and the moment of inertia, thereby extending the scope of I-Love-Q universality. We find that similar relations hold among the tidal and rotational-tidal Love numbers. These relations extend the applications of I-Love universality in gravitational-wave astronomy. As our findings differ from those reported in the literature, we derive general formulas for the rotational-tidal Love numbers in post-Newtonian theory and confirm numerically that they agree with our general-relativistic computations in the weak-field limit.