Hydrodynamics of Neutron Star Mergers

TL;DR

This paper reviews the theoretical understanding of neutron star mergers, focusing on hydrodynamics and gravitational wave signals, and presents new high-resolution simulations to improve detection prospects.

Contribution

It provides detailed post-Newtonian SPH simulations of neutron star mergers with unprecedented resolution, enhancing the modeling of gravitational wave signals.

Findings

High-resolution simulations improve gravitational wave signal modeling

Detection prospects for gravitational waves from neutron star mergers are analyzed

Theoretical insights into hydrodynamics of neutron star coalescence

Abstract

The final burst of gravitational radiation emitted by coalescing binary neutron stars carries direct information about the neutron star fluid, and, in particular, about the equation of state of nuclear matter at extreme densities. The final merger may also be accompanied by a detectable electromagnetic signal, such as a gamma-ray burst. In this paper, we summarize the results of theoretical work done over the past decade that has led to a detailed understanding of this hydrodynamic merger process for two neutron stars, and we discuss the prospects for the detection and physical interpretation of the gravity wave signals by ground-based interferometers such as LIGO. We also present results from our latest post-Newtonian SPH calculations of binary neutron star coalescence, using up to 10^6 SPH particles to compute with higher spatial resolution than ever before the merger of an initially irrotational system. We discuss the detectability of our calculated gravity wave signals based on power spectra.