Related papers: Pycnonuclear reactions in dense stellar matter
We outline the phenomenon of deep crustal heating in transiently accreting neutron stars. It is produced by nuclear transformations (mostly, by pycnonuclear reactions) in accreted matter while this matter sinks to densities rho > 10^{10}…
The observation of X-rays during quiescence from transiently accreting neutron stars provides unique clues about the nature of dense matter. This, however, requires extensive modeling of the crusts and matching the results to observations.…
Thermal radiation of neutron stars in soft X-ray transients (SXTs) in a quiescent state is believed to be powered by the heat deposited in the stellar crust due to nuclear reactions during accretion. Confronting observations of this…
We calculate the thermal structure and quiescent thermal luminosity of accreting neutron stars (warmed by deep crustal heating in accreted matter) in soft X-ray transients (SXTs). We consider neutron stars with nucleon and hyperon cores and…
The observed thermal relaxation of transiently accreting neutron stars during quiescence periods in low-mass X-ray binaries suggests the existence of unknown heat sources in the shallow layers of neutron-star crust. Making use of existing…
Thermal emission of neutron stars in soft X-ray transients (SXTs) in a quiescent state is believed to be powered by the heat deposited in the stellar crust due to nuclear reactions during accretion (deep crustal heating paradigm).…
Nuclear reactions in accreting neutron-star crusts and the heat release accompanying them are studied, under different assumptions concerning the composition of the outermost layer formed of the ashes of X-ray bursts. Particular examples of…
It is assumed that accreting neutron stars (NSs) in LMXBs are heated due to the compression of the existing crust by the accreted matter which gives rise to nuclear reactions in the crust. It has been shown that most of the energy is…
We study long-term thermal evolution of neutron stars in soft X-ray transients (SXTs), taking the deep crustal heating into account consistently with the changes of the composition of the crust. We collect observational estimates of average…
A quasi-statistical equilibrium model is constructed to simulate the multicomponent composition of the crust of an accreting neutron star. The ashes of rp-process nucleosynthesis are driven by accretion through a series of electron…
Observation of cooling neutron stars can potentially provide information about the states of matter at supernuclear densities. We review physical properties important for cooling such as neutrino emission processes and superfluidity in the…
We study thermal states of transiently accreting neutron stars (with mean accretion rates $\dot{M} \sim 10^{-14}-10^{-9}$ M$_\odot$ yr$^{-1}$) determined by the deep crustal heating of accreted matter sinking into stellar interiors. We…
New astrophysical instruments such as skA (square kilometer Array) and IXO (formerly Constellation X) promise the discovery of tens of thousands of new isolated rotating neutron stars (pulsars), neutron stars in low-mass X-ray binaries…
Nuclear reactions occurring deep in the crust of a transiently accreting neutron star efficiently maintain the core at a temperature >5e7 K. When accretion halts, the envelope relaxes to a thermal equilibrium set by the flux from the hot…
Neutron stars serve as excellent next-generation thermal detectors of dark matter, heated by the scattering and annihilation of dark matter accelerated to relativistic speeds in their deep gravitational wells. However, the dynamics of…
We study the quiescent luminosities of accreting neutron stars by a new mechanism as neutrino heating for additional deep crustal heating, where the neutrino heating is produced by charged pions decay from the nuclear collisions on the…
We study the effect of physics input on thermal evolution of neutron stars in soft X-ray transients (SXTs). In particular, we consider different modern models of the sources of deep crustal heating during accretion episodes and the effects…
We present a new mechanism for deep crustal heating in accreting neutron stars. Charged pions ($\pi^+$) are produced in nuclear collisions on the neutron star surface during active accretion and upon decay they provide a flux of neutrinos…
Thermal evolution of neutron stars is known to depend on the properties of superdense matter in neutron star cores. We suggest a statistical analysis of isolated cooling middle-aged neutron stars and old transiently accreting…
The temperature in the crust of an accreting neutron star, which comprises its outermost kilometer, is set by heating from nuclear reactions at large densities, neutrino cooling, and heat transport from the interior. The heated crust has…