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[27.01] Decrease of r-mode gravitational radiation as a signal of the onset of superconductivity in newly formed neutron stars

D. Markovic, F.K. Lamb (Illinois), L. Rezzolla (SISSA), S.L. Shapiro (Illinois)

The r-modes of rapidly spinning young neutron stars have recently attracted attention as a promising source of detectable gravitational radiation. We report new results on the consequences for the instability of r-modes of the cooling and transition to superconductivity of the cores of newly formed magnetic neutron stars. We show that this transition typically increases the effect of core magnetic fields on the r-modes by many orders of magnitude. Core fields of the order of 10¹⁰G or greater are usually sufficient to damp r-modes that have been excited by emission of gravitational radiation and to suppress any further emission. A rapid drop in the strength of r-mode gravitational radiation from young neutron stars may therefore signal the onset of superconductivity in the core and provide a lower bound on the strength of the magnetic field there. Hence, measurements of r-mode gravitational waves from newly formed neutron stars may provide valuable diagnostic information about magnetic field strengths, cooling processes, and the transition to superconductivity in neutron stars.

This research was supported in part by NASA grant NAG 5-8424 at the University of Illinois.

The author(s) of this abstract have provided an email address for comments about the abstract: markovic@mail.physics.uiuc.edu

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