RUI: Neutron-Star Matter in the LIGO A+ Era and Beyond

中子星是了解物质最高密度形式的未知结构和组成的关键场所。引力波发射跟踪了中子星内部致密物质的动力学，LIGO和室女座科学合作小组发现了合并了GW170817的双中子星，开启了利用引力波研究致密物质的时代。由这笔赠款资助的研究将支持使用升级的LIGO和Virgo探测器进行未来观测的精密中子星物质科学，提供对无法在地球上再现的物质形式的洞察。它将吸引和支持加州州立大学富勒顿分校的本科生和硕士学生，这是一家为拉美裔服务的机构，在核物理和引力波天文学的交叉点进行尖端研究。中子星合并产生的引力波的相位演化带有恒星内部结构的印记。目前，唯一可测量的物质特征是由于前序潮汐变形性参数。然而，探测器灵敏度的改进有望在不久的将来提供更响亮和更多的中子星观测，解锁以次前级潮汐变形率和动力潮汐编码的信息。在为这些未来的测量做准备时，将开发最先进的基础设施，将引力波的可观测性与致密物质的基本性质，包括其状态方程联系起来。特别是，这一推断状态方程的全面贝叶斯框架将考虑到迄今尚未测量的物质特征、中子星数量的不确定性以及来自核理论和脉冲星电磁观测的先验信息。这些工具将被用来分析未来的引力波观测，帮助最大限度地增加它们所传授的致密物质知识的数量。这一奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Neutron stars are critical sites for learning about the unknown structure and makeup of matter in its most extreme high-density form. Gravitational wave emission traces the dynamics of dense matter in neutron-star interiors, and the discovery of the binary neutron star merger GW170817 by the LIGO and Virgo Scientific Collaborations inaugurated the era of dense matter studies with gravitational waves. The research funded by this grant will support precision neutron-star matter science using future observations with upgraded LIGO and Virgo detectors, providing insight into forms of matter that cannot be recreated on Earth. It will engage and support undergraduate and Masters students at California State University Fullerton, a Hispanic-Serving Institution, in cutting-edge research at the intersection of nuclear physics and gravitational-wave astronomy. The phase evolution of the gravitational waves from a neutron star merger carries an imprint of the stars' internal structure. Currently, the only measurable matter signature is due to the leading-order tidal deformability parameter. However, improvements to detector sensitivities are poised to deliver louder and more numerous neutron star observations in the near future, unlocking the information encoded in next-to-leading-order tidal deformabilities and dynamical tides. In preparation for these future measurements, state-of-the-art infrastructure will be developed to connect gravitational-wave observables to the fundamental properties of dense matter, including its equation of state. In particular, this comprehensive Bayesian framework for inferring the equation of state will account for as-yet-unmeasured matter signatures, for uncertainty in the neutron star population, and for prior information from nuclear theory and electromagnetic observations of pulsars. These tools will be deployed to analyze future gravitational wave observations, helping to maximize the amount of dense matter knowledge they impart.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.