Does elasticity stabilise a magnetic neutron star?
arXiv:2007.12400 · doi:10.1093/mnras/staa3015
Abstract
The configuration of the magnetic field in the interior of a neutron star is mostly unknown from observations. Theoretical models of the interior magnetic field geometry tend to be oversimplified to avoid mathematical complexity and tend to be based on axisymmetric barotropic fluid systems. These static magnetic equilibrium configurations have been shown to be unstable on a short time scale against an infinitesimal perturbation. Given this instability, it is relevant to consider how more realistic neutron star physics affects the outcome. In particular, it makes sense to ask if elasticity, which provides an additional restoring force on the perturbations, may stabilise the system. It is well-known that the matter in the neutron star crust forms an ionic crystal. The interactions between the crystallized nuclei can generate shear stress against any applied strain. To incorporate the effect of the crust on the dynamical evolution of the perturbed equilibrium structure, we study the effect of elasticity on the instability of an axisymmetric magnetic star. In particular we determine the critical shear modulus required to prevent magnetic instability and consider the corresponding astrophysical consequences.
12 pages, accepted for publication in MNRAS
References in corpus (11)
- The Breaking Strain of Neutron Star Crust and Gravitational Waves
- A NICER view of PSR J0030+0451: evidence for a global-scale multipolar magnetic field
- Magnetic, thermal and rotational evolution of isolated neutron stars
- Instability of Magnetic Equilibria in Barotropic Stars
- Molecular Dynamics Simulation of Shear Moduli for Coulomb Crystals
- Magnetic Fields of Neutron Stars
- The illusion of neutron star magnetic field estimates
- Mass-radius relation of strongly magnetized white dwarfs: nearly independent of Landau quantization
- Current closure through the neutron star crust
- Superfluidity in the Interiors of Neutron Stars
- Mass-radius relation of strongly magnetized white dwarfs
Cited by in corpus (5)
- How the Big Bang Ends up Inside a Black Hole
- Magneto-elastic equilibrium of a neutron-star crust
- Magnetic field sustained by the elastic force in neutron star crusts
- A gravitational-wave perspective on neutron-star seismology
- Covariance-based smoothed particle hydrodynamics. A machine-learning application to simulating disc fragmentation