Related papers: Formation of Double Compact Objects
Our current understanding of the physical processes of star formation is reviewed, with emphasis on processes occurring in molecular clouds like those observed nearby. The dense cores of these clouds are predicted to undergo gravitational…
Calculations of the cosmic rate of core collapses, and the associated neutrino flux, commonly assume that a fixed fraction of massive stars collapse to black holes. We argue that recent results suggest that this fraction instead increases…
We compute and present the distribution in mass of single and binary neutron stars, strange stars, and black holes. The calculations were performed using a stellar population synthesis code. We follow evolution of massive single stars as…
Probing gravity in its strongest regime is a central goal of modern physics, as the nature of the most compact objects reflects fundamental aspects of Einstein's theory of general relativity (GR). In GR, black holes are regarded as the most…
We discuss the formation and evolution of binaries which contain neutron stars or black holes. It is shown that in a stellar system which for $10^{10}$ yr had star formation rate similar to the current one in the Galactic disc, the rate of…
Recent developments in the spectropolarimetric study of compact objects, specifically black holes (stellar and massive) and neutron stars are reviewed. The lectures are organized around five topics: disks, jets, outflows, neutron stars and…
Black holes and neutron stars present extreme forms of matter that cannot be created as such in a laboratory on Earth. Instead, we have to observe and analyze the experiments that are ongoing in the Universe. The most telling observations…
We review theoretical developments in studies of dense matter and its phase structure of relevance to compact stars. Observational data on compact stars, which can constrain the properties of dense matter, are presented critically and…
We investigate how current and proposed observations of neutron stars can lead to an understanding of the state of their interiors and the key unknowns: the typical neutron star radius and the neutron star maximum mass. A theoretical…
We analyze the currently available observations of X-ray binaries in a consistent way, to re-determine the masses of the neutron stars in these systems. In particular, our attention is focussed on a realistic and consistent assessment of…
Models for the internal composition of Dense Compact Stars are reviewed as well as macroscopic properties derived by observations of relativistic processes. Modeling of pure neutron matter Neutron Stars is presented and crust properties are…
Compact objects observed via gravitational waves are classified as black holes or neutron stars primarily based on their inferred mass with respect to stellar evolution expectations. However, astrophysical expectations for the lowest mass…
Double compact objects (neutron stars and black holes) found in binaries with small orbital separations are known to spiral in and are expected to coalesce eventually because of the emission of gravitational waves. Such inspiral and merger…
Gravitational wave astronomy might allow us to detect the coalescence of low-brightness astrophysical compact objects which are extremely difficult to be observed with current electromagnetic telescopes. Besides classical sources like black…
A viable model for the dense matter equation of state above the nuclear saturation density includes a hadron-to-quark phase transition at densities relevant to compact objects. In this case, stable hybrid hadron-quark stars can arise. An…
Recent years have seen a surge of interest in the community studying the effect of ultraviolet radiation environment, predominantly set by OB stars, on protoplanetary disc evolution and planet formation. This is important because a…
Can one distinguish a binary black hole undergoing a merger from a binary neutron star if the individual compact companions have masses that fall inside the so-called mass gap of $3-5\ M_\odot$? For neutron stars, achieving such masses…
We highlight recent theoretical and observational progress in several areas of neutron star astrophysics, and discuss the prospect for advances in the next decade.
The collapse of massive stars is one of the most-studied paths to black hole formation. In this chapter, we review black hole formation during the collapse of massive stars in the broader context of single and binary stellar evolution and…
Binary stars produce an array of dramatic astrophysical phenomena. They allow us to probe stellar structure, nuclear physics, and gravitational wave physics. They also produce the powerful supernovae that allow us to measure the scale of…