Vortex pinning in the superfluid core of relativistic neutron stars

TL;DR

This paper extends a Newtonian model of vortex pinning in superfluid neutron stars to a fully relativistic framework, providing equations essential for simulating star dynamics and understanding pulsar glitches.

Contribution

It adapts a Newtonian vortex pinning model to general relativity, enabling realistic simulations of neutron star superfluid dynamics.

Findings

Derived dynamical equations for relativistic superfluid simulations.

Showed the complex role of vortex pinning in star dynamics.

Provided tools for interpreting pulsar frequency glitches.

Abstract

Our recent Newtonian treatment of the smooth-averaged mutual-friction force acting on the neutron superfluid and locally induced by the pinning of quantized neutron vortices to proton fluxoids in the outer core of superfluid neutron stars is here adapted to the general-relativistic framework. We show how the local nonrelativistic motion of individual vortices can be matched to the global dynamics of the star using the fully 4D covariant Newtonian formalism of Carter & Chamel (2004). We derive all the necessary dynamical equations for carrying out realistic simulations of superfluid rotating neutron stars in full general relativity, as required for the interpretation of pulsar frequency glitches. The role of vortex pinning on the global dynamics appears to be nontrivial.