Gravitational wave

Strange matter

Physics

Polytropic process

LIGO

Quark star

RADIUS

Astrophysics

Quantum mechanics

Stars

Computer science

Solar mass

Neutron star

Computer security

Equation of state

Physical Review Letters

The detection of gravitational waves originating from a neutron-star merger, GW170817, by the LIGO and Virgo Collaborations has recently provided new stringent limits on the tidal deformabilities of the stars involved in the collision. Combining this measurement with the existence of two-solar-mass stars, we generate a generic family of neutron-star-matter equations of state (EOSs) that interpolate between state-of-the-art theoretical results at low and high baryon density. Comparing the results to ones obtained without the tidal-deformability constraint, we witness a dramatic reduction in the family of allowed EOSs. Based on our analysis, we conclude that the maximal radius of a 1.4-solar-mass neutron star is 13.6 km, and that the smallest allowed tidal deformability of a similar-mass star is Λ(1.4 M_{⊙})=120.

Gravitational-Wave Constraints on the Neutron-Star-Matter Equation of State