Effects of ion correlations in high density plasmas: Neutrino scattering and transport properties in supernovae and neutron star crusts
by Caballero Suarez, Olga Liliana, Ph.D., INDIANA UNIVERSITY, 2008, 127 pages; 3337248

Abstract:

Several phenomena in neutron stars depend on the behavior of the high-density ion plasma present in the crust. For example, the dynamics of a core-collapse Supernova is highly sensitive to neutrino scattering from the ions. Also, the cooling times after an X-ray burst depend on the thermal conductivity of the crust, while the damping of r-modes, due to crust-core coupling may affect the emission of gravitational waves. We perform Molecular Dynamics simulations of the ions in the crust to calculate structure factors, neutrino mean free paths, thermal conductivities and viscosities. We find shorter neutrino mean free paths, by a factor of 2, when the plasma has multiple components compared to a one component plasma. For accreting neutron stars, we find a crystal structure of the crust with high thermal conductivity. Finally, we find that the dependence with density of the ion contribution to the shear viscosity, is constant at low densities but increases at higher densities. However, it is several orders of magnitude smaller than the electron contribution.

 
AdviserCharles J. Horowitz
SchoolINDIANA UNIVERSITY
SourceDAI/B 69-12, p. , Mar 2009
Source TypeDissertation
SubjectsAstronomy; Nuclear Physics; Theoretical physics
Publication Number3337248
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