Dynamic model of a non-equilibrium chemical composition formation in the shell of single neutron stars

TL;DR

This paper presents a model explaining how non-equilibrium chemical compositions form in neutron star crusts during cooling, highlighting the accumulation of nuclear energy that sustains X-ray luminosity over time.

Contribution

It introduces a new model for chemical composition formation in neutron star crusts during cooling, emphasizing nuclear energy accumulation and its impact on luminosity.

Findings

Chemical composition depends on model parameters

Nuclear energy accumulation sustains X-ray luminosity

Final composition varies with cooling conditions

Abstract

The process of a non-equilibrium chemical composition formation in the crust of a new born neutron star is considered, during cooling due to neutrino energy losses. A model is constructed for explaining accumulation of a large quantity of nuclear energy, which can maintain the X-ray luminosity of such compact objects for a long period of time. We studied numerically the dependence of the final chemical composition on various parameters of the model.