{
  "id": "2006.14936",
  "version": "v1",
  "published": "2020-06-26T12:29:22.000Z",
  "updated": "2020-06-26T12:29:22.000Z",
  "title": "Parameter estimation for strong phase transitions in supranuclear matter using gravitational-wave astronomy",
  "authors": [
    "Peter T. H. Pang",
    "Tim Dietrich",
    "Ingo Tews",
    "Chris Van Den Broeck"
  ],
  "comment": "17 pages, 11 figures",
  "categories": [
    "astro-ph.HE",
    "gr-qc",
    "nucl-th"
  ],
  "abstract": "At supranuclear densities, explored in the core of neutron stars, a strong phase transition from hadronic matter to more exotic forms of matter might be present. To test this hypothesis, binary neutron-star mergers offer a unique possibility to probe matter at densities that we can not create in any existing terrestrial experiment. In this work, we show that, if present, strong phase transitions can have a measurable imprint on the binary neutron-star coalescence and the emitted gravitational-wave signal. We construct a new parameterization of the supranuclear equation of state that allows us to test for the existence of a strong phase transition and extract its characteristic properties purely from the gravitational-wave signal of the inspiraling neutron stars. We test our approach using a Bayesian inference study simulating 600 signals with three different equations of state and find that for current gravitational-wave detector networks already twelve events might be sufficient to verify the presence of a strong phase transition. Finally, we use our methodology to analyze GW170817 and GW190425, but do not find any indication that a strong phase transition is present at densities probed during the inspiral.",
  "revisions": [
    {
      "version": "v1",
      "updated": "2020-06-26T12:29:22.000Z"
    }
  ],
  "analyses": {
    "keywords": [
      "strong phase transition",
      "supranuclear matter",
      "gravitational-wave astronomy",
      "parameter estimation",
      "neutron stars"
    ],
    "note": {
      "typesetting": "TeX",
      "pages": 17,
      "language": "en",
      "license": "arXiv",
      "status": "editable"
    }
  }
}