引力子质量对中子星I-Q关系的修正

近年来,研究发现中子星的转动惯量I和四极矩Q存在着一个关系式,即I-Q关系.而且,该关系式不依赖于中子星内部的物态方程,与引力理论相关.因此,对该关系式的研究可用来检验引力理论.de Rham-GabadadzeTolley(dRGT)massive gravity是一种自洽的引力子静止质量不为零的修正引力理论,是目前国际引力理论研究的热点.本论文主要基于该修正引力理论,在慢速旋转近似下,利用多方指数n=0的物态方程,计算了dRGT massive gravity中牛顿极限下的I-Q关系.我们将dRGT massive gravity与爱因斯坦引力中的I-Q关系进行比较,发现引力子质量不会影响I与Q的平方之间无量纲化后的正比关系,但会改变其比例系数.     

核子“直接URCA”过程发生的条件和中子星的冷却机制

讨论了核子的“直接ＵＲＣＡ”过程发生的条件，发现在ＵＶ１４＋ＵＶⅡ态式描述的中子星物质中，核子的“直接ＵＲＣＡ”过程发生的条件是质子数分数必须超过０．１４；强调在中子昨丙“标准冷却”机制和“非标准冷却”机械可能同时存在；对几个没质量中子星的冷却过程的计算结果表明，引力 质量小于约１．６Ｍ的中子星核内应发生“标准冷却”过程，而在引力质量大于约１．６Ｍ的中子星核内可能存在２种冷却机制。     

A two-solar-mass neutron star measured using Shapiro delay

Neutron stars are composed of the densest form of matter known to exist in our Universe, the composition and properties of which are still theoretically uncertain. Measurements of the masses or radii of these objects can strongly constrain the neutron star matter equation of state and rule out theoretical models of their composition. The observed range of neutron star masses, however, has hitherto been too narrow to rule out many predictions of 'exotic' non-nucleonic components. The Shapiro delay is a general-relativistic increase in light travel time through the curved space-time near a massive body. For highly inclined (nearly edge-on) binary millisecond radio pulsar systems, this effect allows us to infer the masses of both the neutron star and its binary companion to high precision. Here we present radio timing observations of the binary millisecond pulsar J1614-2230 that show a strong Shapiro delay signature. We calculate the pulsar mass to be (1.97?±?0.04)M(⊙), which rules out almost all currently proposed hyperon or boson condensate equations of state (M(⊙), solar mass). Quark matter can support a star this massive only if the quarks are strongly interacting and are therefore not 'free' quarks.     

包含Δ共振态的核物质

在相对论平均场理论框架下研究了包括Δ共振态核物 质的状态方程. 研究表明, 随着Δ粒子相对数密度的增加, 饱和点处的结合能下降, 并向总粒子数密度增加方向移动, 状态方程逐渐变软. 结果表明, 包括Δ粒子的中子星物质是中子星一个可能的相结构.     

预测某些中子星的构成组份

在理论上对中子星的构成组份以及中子星物质的不可压缩性进行不同的设定,通过计算得到一系列对应的中子星质量理论最大值。将这些计算值与观测值进行对比,可预测出某些中子星的构成组份。     

中子星辐射引力红移的量子真空极化修正

测量中子星表面辐射谱的引力红移被认为是探究这类致密天体基本物理特性最为直接有效的手段. 但是,脉冲星、磁星这些强磁化中子星表面的辐射红移不仅源于引力的作用, 还需要考虑星体表面的磁化等离子体以及由超强磁场所诱导的量子电动力学(quantum electrodynamics, QED) 真空极化效应对辐射的电磁作用. 运用Gordon有效度规理论研究磁化等离子体以及QED真空极化效应对星体辐射的影响. 计算结果表明, 一般情况下对辐射引力红移的修正起主要作用的是星体表面的磁化等离子体, 但在某些特定情况下, 还必须考虑QED真空极化效应的作用.     

超子耦合参数对前身中子星引力红移的影响

利用相对论平均场理论,考虑重子八重态{n,p,Λ,Σ-,Σ0,+,Ξ-,Ξ0}, 研究了超子耦合参数对前身中子星引力红移的影响. 研究发现：作为中心能量密度函数的引力红移随中心能量密度的增大而增大,并且它对超子耦合参数较敏感.对于不考虑超子的情形,引力红移最大.同时作为质量函数的引力红移对超子耦合参数也较敏感;我们的计算结果间接地被证明与天文观测相符. 研究还发现,作为M/R函数的引力红移对超子耦合参数不敏感.     

Nuclear-powered millisecond pulsars and the maximum spin frequency of neutron stars

Millisecond pulsars are neutron stars that are thought to have been spun-up by mass accretion from a stellar companion. It is not known whether there is a natural brake for this process, or if it continues until the centrifugal breakup limit is reached at submillisecond periods. Many neutron stars that are accreting mass from a companion star exhibit thermonuclear X-ray bursts that last tens of seconds, caused by unstable nuclear burning on their surfaces. Millisecond-period brightness oscillations during bursts from ten neutron stars (as distinct from other rapid X-ray variability that is also observed) are thought to measure the stellar spin, but direct proof of a rotational origin has been lacking. Here we report the detection of burst oscillations at the known spin frequency of an accreting millisecond pulsar, and we show that these oscillations always have the same rotational phase. This firmly establishes burst oscillations as nuclear-powered pulsations tracing the spin of accreting neutron stars, corroborating earlier evidence. The distribution of spin frequencies of the 11 nuclear-powered pulsars cuts off well below the breakup frequency for most neutron-star models, supporting theoretical predictions that gravitational radiation losses can limit accretion torques in spinning up millisecond pulsars.     

Soft equations of state for neutron-star matter ruled out by EXO 0748 - 676

The interiors of neutron stars contain matter at very high densities, in a state that differs greatly from those found in the early Universe or achieved in terrestrial experiments. Matter in these conditions can only be probed through astrophysical observations that measure the mass and radius of neutron stars with sufficient precision. Here I report a determination of the mass and radius of the neutron star EXO 0748 - 676 that appears to rule out all the soft equations of state of neutron-star matter. If this object is typical, then condensates and unconfined quarks do not exist in the centres of neutron stars.     

Astrophysics: quark matter in compact stars?

In a theoretical interpretation of observational data from the neutron star EXO 0748-676, Ozel concludes that quark matter probably does not exist in the centre of neutron stars. However, this conclusion is based on a limited set of possible equations of state for quark matter. Here we compare Ozel's observational limits with predictions based on a more comprehensive set of proposed quark-matter equations of state from the literature, and conclude that the presence of quark matter in EXO 0748-676 is not ruled out.     

核子耦合参数对中子星中超子相的影响

中子星中超子的出现以及超子的比例对中子星的性质具有重要影响,不同的核子相互作用模型如何影响中子星中的超子是一个重要物理问题.从相对论平均场理论出发,选取不同核子耦合参数,计算了中子星中超子的数密度,发现不同类核子耦合参数对中子星中超子出现和中子星向超子星转变的转变密度有不同影响,而且核子相互作用的σ介子势和ω介子势影响显著,而ρ介子势影响较小.这些结果对大质量中子星性质的理论研究具有重要参考价值.     

An origin for short gamma-ray bursts unassociated with current star formation

Two short (< 2 s) gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) have recently been localized and fading afterglow counterparts detected. The combination of these two results left unclear the nature of the host galaxies of the bursts, because one was a star-forming dwarf, while the other was probably an elliptical galaxy. Here we report the X-ray localization of a short burst (GRB 050724) with unusual gamma-ray and X-ray properties. The X-ray afterglow lies off the centre of an elliptical galaxy at a redshift of z = 0.258 (ref. 5), coincident with the position determined by ground-based optical and radio observations. The low level of star formation typical for elliptical galaxies makes it unlikely that the burst originated in a supernova explosion. A supernova origin was also ruled out for GRB 050709 (refs 3, 31), even though that burst took place in a galaxy with current star formation. The isotropic energy for the short bursts is 2-3 orders of magnitude lower than that for the long bursts. Our results therefore suggest that an alternative source of bursts--the coalescence of binary systems of neutron stars or a neutron star-black hole pair--are the progenitors of short bursts.     

Δ共振态存在于中子星内部的可能性探讨

本文通过相对论平均场理论和Tolman-Oppenheimer-Volkoff方程来研究中子星的微观和宏观性质。与最新的脉冲星J1614-2230的观测数据作比照,可以发现除了传统的中子星物质外,Δ共振态中的Δ-和Δ0粒子也很可能大量存在于PSR J1614-2230的内部。另外,也进一步探讨了Δ共振态对中子星所产生的影响。     

A debris disk around an isolated young neutron star

Pulsars are rotating, magnetized neutron stars that are born in supernova explosions following the collapse of the cores of massive stars. If some of the explosion ejecta fails to escape, it may fall back onto the neutron star or it may possess sufficient angular momentum to form a disk. Such 'fallback' is both a general prediction of current supernova models and, if the material pushes the neutron star over its stability limit, a possible mode of black hole formation. Fallback disks could dramatically affect the early evolution of pulsars, yet there are few observational constraints on whether significant fallback occurs or even the actual existence of such disks. Here we report the discovery of mid-infrared emission from a cool disk around an isolated young X-ray pulsar. The disk does not power the pulsar's X-ray emission but is passively illuminated by these X-rays. The estimated mass of the disk is of the order of 10 Earth masses, and its lifetime (> or = 10(6) years) significantly exceeds the spin-down age of the pulsar, supporting a supernova fallback origin. The disk resembles protoplanetary disks seen around ordinary young stars, suggesting the possibility of planet formation around young neutron stars.     

The signature of the first stars in atomic hydrogen at redshift 20

Dark and baryonic matter moved at different velocities in the early Universe, which strongly suppressed star formation in some regions. This was estimated to imprint a large-scale fluctuation signal of about two millikelvin in the 21-centimetre spectral line of atomic hydrogen associated with stars at a redshift of 20, although this estimate ignored the critical contribution of gas heating due to X-rays and major enhancements of the suppression. A large velocity difference reduces the abundance of haloes and requires the first stars to form in haloes of about a million solar masses, substantially greater than previously expected. Here we report a simulation of the distribution of the first stars at redshift 20 (cosmic age of around 180 million years), incorporating all these ingredients within a 400-megaparsec box. We find that the 21-centimetre hydrogen signature of these stars is an enhanced (ten millikelvin) fluctuation signal on the hundred-megaparsec scale, characterized by a flat power spectrum with prominent baryon acoustic oscillations. The required sensitivity to see this signal is achievable with an integration time of a thousand hours with an instrument like the Murchison Wide-field Array or the Low Frequency Array but designed to operate in the range of 50-100 megahertz.     

π介子凝聚对中子星物质的影响

在相对论平均场理论框架下研究了π^-介子凝聚对包括Δ共振态的中子星物质状态方程及其粒子分布的影响. 研究表明, π^-介子凝聚的存在对中子星物质的粒子分布有明显影响, 使Δ^-粒子出现推迟, Δ⁺粒子出现提前. π^-介子凝聚的出现还使中子星物质的状态方程变软. 尽管这种改变很小, 但这种变软的趋势仍具有重要的意义.     

Unbound or distant planetary mass population detected by gravitational microlensing

Since 1995, more than 500 exoplanets have been detected using different techniques, of which 12 were detected with gravitational microlensing. Most of these are gravitationally bound to their host stars. There is some evidence of free-floating planetary-mass objects in young star-forming regions, but these objects are limited to massive objects of 3 to 15 Jupiter masses with large uncertainties in photometric mass estimates and their abundance. Here, we report the discovery of a population of unbound or distant Jupiter-mass objects, which are almost twice (1.8(+1.7)(-0.8)) as common as main-sequence stars, based on two years of gravitational microlensing survey observations towards the Galactic Bulge. These planetary-mass objects have no host stars that can be detected within about ten astronomical units by gravitational microlensing. However, a comparison with constraints from direct imaging suggests that most of these planetary-mass objects are not bound to any host star. An abrupt change in the mass function at about one Jupiter mass favours the idea that their formation process is different from that of stars and brown dwarfs. They may have formed in proto-planetary disks and subsequently scattered into unbound or very distant orbits.     

超子排斥势和弱吸引势对中子星性质的影响

从相对论平均场理论出发,研究了不同超子势下,超子耦合常数对中子星性质的影响．对4种不同的超子势进行了计算,计算发现,∑强排斥势和Ξ的弱吸引势都将抑制超子的产生．作者通过对不同超子势的计算得到以下结果：∑排斥势越强,状态方程越硬,其所得中子星的最大质量越大．计算得到中子星的质量为1．32～1．45M⊙（M⊙为太阳质量）,与实际观测基本符合．     

The formation of a massive protostar through the disk accretion of gas

The formation of low-mass stars like our Sun can be explained by the gravitational collapse of a molecular cloud fragment into a protostellar core and the subsequent accretion of gas and dust from the surrounding interstellar medium. Theoretical considerations suggest that the radiation pressure from the protostar on the in-falling material may prevent the formation of stars above ten solar masses through this mechanism, although some calculations have claimed that stars up to 40 solar masses can in principle be formed via accretion through a disk. Given this uncertainty and the fact that most massive stars are born in dense clusters, it was suggested that high-mass stars are the result of the runaway merging of intermediate-mass stars. Here we report observations that clearly show a massive star being born from a large rotating accretion disk. The protostar has already assembled about 20 solar masses, and the accretion process is still going on. The gas reservoir of the circumstellar disk contains at least 100 solar masses of additional gas, providing sufficient fuel for substantial further growth of the forming star.