Upper critical field and (non)-superconductivity of magnetars

Abstract

We construct equilibrium models of compact stars using a realistic equation of state and obtain the density range occupied by the proton superconductor in strong $B$-fields. We do so by combining the density profiles of our models with microscopic calculations of proton pairing gaps and the critical unpairing field $H_{c2}$ above which the proton type-II superconductivity is destroyed. We find that magnetars with interior homogeneous field within the range $0.1\le B_{16}\le 2$, where $B_{16}=B/10^{16}$ G, are partially superconducting, whereas those with $B_{16}>2$ are void of superconductivity. We briefly discuss the neutrino emissivity and superfluid dynamics of magnetars in the light of their (non)-superconductivity.

arXiv comment6 pages, 2 figures, to appear in "Physics of Elementary Particles and Atomic Nuclei Letters". Proceedings of XXXII Max-Born Symposium, 17. - 19. February 2014, Wroclaw

Cited by in corpus (2)

• Magnetically-driven crustquakes in neutron stars
• Stability of interlinked neutron vortex and proton flux tube arrays in a neutron star: equilibrium configurations