Rapidly Spinning Massive Pulsars as an Indicator of Quark Deconfinement

TL;DR

This paper investigates how rapid rotation in massive hybrid stars can signal quark deconfinement, analyzing the effects of spin on phase transitions and star properties using a detailed hybrid equation of state.

Contribution

It introduces a comprehensive model of rotating hybrid stars with variable quark matter parameters, linking spin effects to quark deconfinement signatures in astrophysical observations.

Findings

Rapid rotation influences the phase transition threshold.

Star properties depend on vector repulsion and pairing couplings.

Model aligns with current astrophysical and gravitational wave data.

Abstract

We study rotating hybrid stars, with particular emphasis on the effect of spin on the deconfinement phase transition and star properties. Our analysis is based on a hybrid equation of state with a phase transition from hadronic matter containing hyperons to color-superconducting quark matter, where the quark phase is modeled within a relativistic density functional approach. By varying the strength of the vector repulsion and diquark pairing couplings in the microscopic quark Lagrangian, we construct a set of hybrid star sequences with different quark-matter onset densities. This framework ensures consistency with astrophysical and gravitational wave constraints on mass, radius, and tidal deformability.