Quark star

Some massive stars collapse to form neutron stars at the end of their life cycle, as has been both observed and explained theoretically. Under the extreme temperatures and pressures inside neutron stars, the neutrons are normally kept apart by a degeneracy pressure, stabilizing the star and hindering further gravitational collapse. However, it is hypothesized that under even more extreme temperature and pressure, the degeneracy pressure of the neutrons is overcome, and the neutrons are forced to merge and dissolve into their constituent quarks, creating an ultra-dense phase of quark matter based on densely packed quarks. In this state, a new equilibrium is supposed to emerge, as a new degeneracy pressure between the quarks, as well as repulsive electromagnetic forces, will occur and hinder total gravitational collapse.

If these ideas are correct, quark stars might occur, and be observable, somewhere in the universe. Theoretically, such a scenario is seen as scientifically plausible, but it has been impossible to prove both observationally and experimentally, because the very extreme conditions needed for stabilizing quark matter cannot be created in any laboratory nor has it been observed directly in nature. The stability of quark matter, and hence the existence of quark stars, is for these reasons among the unsolved problems in physics.

If quark stars can form, then the most likely place to find quark star matter would be inside neutron stars that exceed the internal pressure needed for quark degeneracy – the point at which neutrons break down into a form of dense quark matter. They could also form if a massive star collapses at the end of its life, provided that it is possible for a star to be large enough to collapse beyond a neutron star but not large enough to form a black hole.

If they exist, quark stars would resemble and be easily mistaken for neutron stars: they would form in the death of a massive star in a Type II supernova, be extremely dense and small, and possess a very high gravitational field. They would also lack some features of neutron stars, unless they also contained a shell of neutron matter, because free quarks are not expected to have properties matching degenerate neutron matter. For example, they might be radio-silent, or have atypical sizes, electromagnetic fields, or surface temperatures, compared to neutron stars.

The analysis about quark stars was first proposed in 1965 by Soviet physicists D. D. Ivanenko and D. F. Kurdgelaidze.[1][2] Their existence has not been confirmed.

The equation of state of quark matter is uncertain, as is the transition point between neutron-degenerate matter and quark matter. Theoretical uncertainties have precluded making predictions from first principles. Experimentally, the behaviour of quark matter is being actively studied with particle colliders, but this can only produce very hot (above 10¹² K) quark–gluon plasma blobs the size of atomic nuclei, which decay immediately after formation. The conditions inside compact stars with extremely high densities and temperatures well below 10¹² K cannot be recreated artificially, as there are no known methods to produce, store or study "cold" quark matter directly as it would be found inside quark stars. The theory predicts quark matter to possess some peculiar characteristics under these conditions.

Mass–radius relations for models of a neutron star with no exotic states (red) and a quark star (blue).[3]

It is theorized that when the neutron-degenerate matter, which makes up neutron stars, is put under sufficient pressure from the star's own gravity or the initial supernova creating it, the individual neutrons break down into their constituent quarks (up quarks and down quarks), forming what is known as quark matter. This conversion may be confined to the neutron star's center or it might transform the entire star, depending on the physical circumstances. Such a star is known as a quark star.[4][5]

Quark stars have some special characteristics that separate them from ordinary neutron stars.

Under the physical conditions found inside neutron stars, with extremely high densities but temperatures well below 10¹² K, quark matter is predicted to exhibit some peculiar characteristics. It is expected to behave as a Fermi liquid and enter a so-called color-flavor-locked (CFL) phase of color superconductivity, where "color" refers to the six "charges" exhibited in the strong interaction, instead of the two charges (positive and negative) in electromagnetism. At slightly lower densities, corresponding to higher layers closer to the surface of the compact star, the quark matter will behave as a non-CFL quark liquid, a phase that is even more mysterious than CFL and might include color conductivity and/or several additional yet undiscovered phases. None of these extreme conditions can currently be recreated in laboratories so nothing can be inferred about these phases from direct experiments.[9]

If the conversion of neutron-degenerate matter to (strange) quark matter is total, a quark star can to some extent be imagined as a single gigantic hadron. But this "hadron" will be bound by gravity, rather than by the strong force that binds ordinary hadrons.

At least under the assumptions mentioned above, the probability of a given neutron star being a quark star is low, so in the Milky Way there would only be a small population of quark stars. If it is correct, however, that overdense neutron stars can turn into quark stars, that makes the possible number of quark stars higher than was originally thought, as observers would be looking for the wrong type of star.

A neutron star without deconfinement to quarks and higher densities cannot have a rotational period shorter than a millisecond; even with the unimaginable gravity of such a condensed object the centripetal force of faster rotation would eject matter from the surface, so detection of a pulsar of millisecond or less period would be strong evidence of a quark star.

Observations released by the Chandra X-ray Observatory on April 10, 2002 detected two possible quark stars, designated RX J1856.5-3754 and 3C 58, which had previously been thought to be neutron stars. Based on the known laws of physics, the former appeared much smaller and the latter much colder than it should be, suggesting that they are composed of material denser than neutron-degenerate matter. However, these observations are met with skepticism by researchers who say the results were not conclusive;[10] and since the late 2000s, the possibility that RX J1856 is a quark star has been excluded.

Another star, XTE J1739-285,[11] has been observed by a team led by Philip Kaaret of the University of Iowa and reported as a possible quark star candidate.

In 2006, You-Ling Yue et al., from Peking University, suggested that PSR B0943+10 may in fact be a low-mass quark star.[12]

It was reported in 2008 that observations of supernovae SN 2006gy, SN 2005gj and SN 2005ap also suggest the existence of quark stars.[13] It has been suggested that the collapsed core of supernova SN 1987A may be a quark star.[14][15]

In 2015, Zi-Gao Dai et al. from Nanjing University suggested that Supernova ASASSN-15lh is a newborn strange quark star.[16]

In 2022 it was suggested that GW190425, which likely formed as a merger between two neutron stars giving off gravitational waves in the process, could be a quark star.[17]

Apart from ordinary quark matter and strange quark matter, other types of quark-gluon plasma might theoretically occur or be formed inside neutron stars and quark stars. This includes the following, some of which has been observed and studied in laboratories:

• Robert L. Jaffe 1977, suggested a four-quark state with strangeness (qsqs).
• Robert L. Jaffe 1977 suggested the H dibaryon, a six-quark state with equal numbers of up-, down-, and strange quarks (represented as uuddss or udsuds).
• Bound multi-quark systems with heavy quarks (QQqq).
• In 1987, a pentaquark state was first proposed with a charm anti-quark (qqqsc).
• Pentaquark state with an antistrange quark and four light quarks consisting of up- and down-quarks only (qqqqs).
• Light pentaquarks are grouped within an antidecuplet, the lightest candidate, Θ⁺, which can also be described by the diquark model of Robert L. Jaffe and Wilczek (QCD).
• Θ⁺⁺ and antiparticle Θ⁻⁻.
• Doubly strange pentaquark (ssddu), member of the light pentaquark antidecuplet.
• Charmed pentaquark Θ_c(3100) (uuddc) state was detected by the H1 collaboration.[18]
• Tetraquark particles might form inside neutron stars and under other extreme conditions. In 2008, 2013 and 2014 the tetraquark particle of Z(4430), was discovered and investigated in laboratories on Earth.[19]

• Blaschke, David; Sedrakian, David, eds. (2003). Superdense QCD Matter and Compact Stars. NATO Science Series II: Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry. Vol. 197. Springer. doi:10.1007/1-4020-3430-X. ISBN 978-1-4020-3428-2.
• Blaschke, David; Sedrakian, Armen; Glendenning, Norman K., eds. (2001). Physics of neutron star interiors. Lecture Notes in Physics. Vol. 578. Springer-Verlag. doi:10.1007/3-540-44578-1. ISBN 978-3-540-42340-9.
• Plessas, Willibald; Mathelitsch, Leopold, eds. (2002). Lectures on quark matter. Lecture Notes in Physics. Vol. 583. Springer. doi:10.1007/3-540-45792-5. ISBN 978-3-540-43234-0.

• Jaffe, Robert L. (1977). "Perhaps a Stable Dihyperon" (PDF). Physical Review Letters. 38 (5): 195–198. Bibcode:1977PhRvL..38..195J. doi:10.1103/PhysRevLett.38.195. OSTI 1446298.
• Neutron Star/Quark Star Interior (image to print)
• Whitfield,John; "Quark star glimmers", Nature, 2002 April 11
• "Debate sparked on quark stars", CERN Courier 42, #5, June 2002, page 13
• Beck, Paul; "Wish Upon a Quark Star", Popular Science, June 2002
• Drake; Marshall; Dreizler; Freeman; Fruscione; Juda; Kashyap; Nicastro; et al. (2002). "Is RX J185635-375 a Quark Star?". Astrophysical Journal. 572 (2): 996–1001. arXiv:astro-ph/0204159. Bibcode:2002ApJ...572..996D. doi:10.1086/340368. S2CID 18481546.
• Krivoruchenko, M. I.; "Strange, quark, and metastable neutron stars" Archived 2013-10-16 at the Wayback Machine, JETP Letters, vol. 46, no. 1, 10 July 1987, pages 3-6 (page 6: Perhaps a 1,700-year-old quark star in SNR MSH 15-52)
• Rothstein, Dave; "Curious About Astronomy: What process would bring about a quark star?", question #445, January 2003
• Nemiroff, Robert; Bonnell, Jerry; "RX J185635-375: Candidate Quark Star", Astronomy Picture of the Day, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, 2002 April 14
• Anderson, Mark K.: Quarks or Quirky Neutron Stars?, Wired News, 2002 April 19
• Boyce, Kevin; Still, Martin; "What is the news about a possible Strange Quark Star?", Ask an Astrophysicist, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, 2002 April 12
• Marquit, Miranda; "Seeing 'Strange' Stars", physorg.com, 2006 February 8
• "Quark Stars Could Produce Biggest Bang", spacedaily.com, 2006 June 7
• Niebergal, Brian: "Meissner Effect in Strange Quark Stars", Computational Astro-Physics Calgary Alberta, University of Calgary
• Sagert, Irina; Wietoska, Mirjam; Schaffner-Bielich, Jurgen (2006). "Strange Exotic States and Compact Stars". Journal of Physics G. 32 (12): S241–S249. arXiv:astro-ph/0608317. Bibcode:2006JPhG...32S.241S. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.257.2063. doi:10.1088/0954-3899/32/12/S30. S2CID 15151001.
• Bryner, Jeanna; "Quark Stars Involved in New Theory of Brightest Supernovae", Space.com, 2008 June 3 (The first-ever evidence of a neutron star collapsing into a quark star is announced)
• Cramer, John G.: "Quark Stars, Alternate View Column AV-114", Analog Science Fiction & Fact Magazine, November 2002