Axion star collisions with neutron stars and fast radio bursts
Abstract
Axions may make a significant contribution to the dark matter of the Universe. It has been suggested that these dark matter axions may condense into localized clumps, called "axion stars." In this paper we argue that collisions of dilute axion stars with neutron stars, of the type known as "magnetars," may be the origin of most of the observed fast radio bursts. This idea is a variation of an idea originally proposed by Iwazaki. However, instead of the surface effect of Iwazaki, we propose a perhaps stronger volume effect caused by the induced time dependent electric dipole moment of neutrons.
- Publication:
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Physical Review D
- Pub Date:
- November 2016
- DOI:
- 10.1103/PhysRevD.94.103004
- arXiv:
- arXiv:1609.01694
- Bibcode:
- 2016PhRvD..94j3004R
- Keywords:
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- High Energy Physics - Phenomenology;
- Astrophysics - High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena
- E-Print:
- 10 pages, published version without figure