Tidal deformability of neutron stars with realistic equations of state and their gravitational wave signatures in binary inspiral
Abstract
The early part of the gravitational wave signal of binary neutron-star inspirals can potentially yield robust information on the nuclear equation of state. The influence of a star’s internal structure on the waveform is characterized by a single parameter: the tidal deformability λ, which measures the star’s quadrupole deformation in response to the companion’s perturbing tidal field. We calculate λ for a wide range of equations of state and find that the value of λ spans an order of magnitude for the range of equation of state models considered. An analysis of the feasibility of discriminating between neutron-star equations of state with gravitational wave observations of the early part of the inspiral reveals that the measurement error in λ increases steeply with the total mass of the binary. Comparing the errors with the expected range of λ, we find that Advanced LIGO observations of binaries at a distance of 100 Mpc will probe only unusually stiff equations of state, while the proposed Einstein Telescope is likely to see a clean tidal signature.
- Publication:
-
Physical Review D
- Pub Date:
- June 2010
- DOI:
- 10.1103/PhysRevD.81.123016
- arXiv:
- arXiv:0911.3535
- Bibcode:
- 2010PhRvD..81l3016H
- Keywords:
-
- 95.85.Sz;
- 04.40.Dg;
- 26.60.Kp;
- Gravitational radiation magnetic fields and other observations;
- Relativistic stars: structure stability and oscillations;
- Equations of state of neutron-star matter;
- Astrophysics - High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena;
- General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology
- E-Print:
- 12 pages, submitted to PRD