A unified thermodynamic framework for coextensive dark matter admixed strange stars

TL;DR

This paper develops a thermodynamic framework for modeling strange stars with admixed dark matter, providing a unified approach to understand how dark matter influences stellar structure and observable properties.

Contribution

It introduces a thermodynamically consistent, unified two-fluid model for strange stars with dark matter, linking microphysics to macroscopic stellar observables.

Findings

Dark matter softens the equation of state.

Maximum mass of stars decreases with dark matter admixture.

Distinct mass-radius signatures suggest observable effects.

Abstract

We investigate the structural and physical properties of a strange star admixed with self-interacting bosonic dark matter. The total energy density is modelled as a weighted combination of quark matter and dark matter components regulated by a fixed local volume fraction. The quark component is described by a linear equation of state, while the dark matter follows a mean-field EOS with repulsive self-interactions. By combining these EOSs into a barotropic effective EOS derived from a unified thermodynamic potential, the two-fluid system is reformulated as a thermodynamically closed and mechanically equilibrated configuration. The construction preserves the dynamical distinction between the quark and dark sectors but treats them as a macroscopically unified mixture governed by a single hydrostatic equilibrium equation. This framework identifies the entirely coextensive limit of two-fluid models as a physically meaningful and thermodynamically closed configuration, providing a coherent macroscopic closure that links dark matter-strange matter microphysics to stellar observables. Using the effective EOS, we solve the governing Tolman-Oppenheimer-Volkoff (TOV) equations to obtain the mass-radius relationship by varying the model parameters. Our results reveal distinct modifications to the $M-R$ profiles, suggesting observable signatures that could offer insights into the impacts of dark matter in extreme astrophysical environments. We note that even a modest dark matter admixture softens the effective equation of state and shrinks the maximum mass limit. We discuss the relevance of our investigation in the context of recent observational data available for pulsars, such as XTE J1814-338, PSR J0348+0432, PSR J0740+6620 and PSRJ0952-0607.