Thursday, October 10, 2024, 16:00
WHGA Auditorium
Sebastien Guillot, University of Toulouse
Abstract:
More than 50 years after the discovery of neutrons stars, their interior
composition and structure remains unknown. Because the extreme densities and
matter asymmetry in neutron star interiors are out of reach for Earth
laboratories, the equation of state of bulk nuclear matter is unknown, with
important implication for astrophysics and nuclear physics. Thankfully,
measurements of neutron stars masses and radii are direct probes of the
interior of these compact objects. In the past two decades, X-ray
observatories have provided some measurements of neutron star radii and
therefore some constraints on the dense matter equation of state. But
recently, the results from the NICER Observatory have provided the most
promising, robust and precise constraints. I will review some of the key
results from the NICER mission (including the most recent measurements) and
give an overview of other existing measurements of masses and radii.
Finally, I will detail future prospects to constrain the equation of state
of dense nuclear matter with future X-ray observatories.