Heating in the Accreted Neutron Star Ocean: Implications for Superburst Ignition

Details Heating in the Accreted Neutron Star Ocean: Implications for Superburst Ignition Heating in the Accreted Neutron Star Ocean: Implications for Superburst Ignition

2006-09-29

arxiv.org/abs/astro-ph/0609828v2

Astrophys.J.662:1188-1197,2007

Astronomy and Astrophysics

Astrophysics

10 pages, 11 figures, the Astrophysical Journal, in press (scheduled for v. 662). Revised from v1 in response to referee's com

Scientific paper

10.1086/517869

We perform a self-consistent calculation of the thermal structure in the crust of a superbursting neutron star. In particular, we follow the nucleosynthetic evolution of an accreted fluid element from its deposition into the atmosphere down to a depth where the electron Fermi energy is 20 MeV. We include temperature-dependent continuum electron capture rates and realistic sources of heat loss by thermal neutrino emission from the crust and core. We show that, in contrast to previous calculations, electron captures to excited states and subsequent gamma-emission significantly reduce the local heat loss due to weak-interaction neutrinos. Depending on the initial composition these reactions release up to a factor of 10 times more heat at densities < 10^{11} g/cc than obtained previously. This heating reduces the ignition depth of superbursts. In particular, it reduces the discrepancy noted by Cumming et al. between the temperatures needed for unstable 12C ignition on timescales consistent with observations and the reduction in crust temperature from Cooper pair neutrino emission.

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