Going from Asymmetric Nuclei to Neutron Stars to Tidal Polarizability in Gravitational Waves

TL;DR

This paper explores the connection between asymmetric nuclei, neutron stars, and gravitational wave signals, emphasizing the role of QCD symmetries and topology in nuclear dynamics and their implications for understanding dense matter.

Contribution

It introduces a novel perspective linking nuclear topology and hidden QCD symmetries to neutron star properties and gravitational wave observations.

Findings

Topological effects influence nuclear dynamics in neutron-rich matter.

Hidden QCD symmetries may impact neutron star structure.

Potential implications for the proton mass problem.

Abstract

Among the five-year government-funded World Class University Projects in Korea, the category-3 program approved at Hanyang University in Seoul led to an exploratory effort to go from neutron-rich nuclei to dense matter in neutron stars. The principal results in what transpired in the effort -- and what followed afterwards -- are described with the focus on the possibly important, hitherto unexplored, role played in nuclear dynamics of topology and hidden symmetries of QCD. The potential link to the proton mass problem is pointed out.