Bridging the Gap by Squeezing Superfluid Matter


Alford M. G., Reddy S., Schwenzer K. O.

PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS, vol.108, no.11, 2012 (SCI-Expanded) identifier identifier identifier

  • Publication Type: Article / Article
  • Volume: 108 Issue: 11
  • Publication Date: 2012
  • Doi Number: 10.1103/physrevlett.108.111102
  • Journal Name: PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS
  • Journal Indexes: Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED), Scopus
  • Istanbul University Affiliated: No

Abstract

Cooper pairing between fermions in dense matter leads to the formation of a gap in the fermionic excitation spectrum and typically exponentially suppresses transport properties. However, we show here that reactions involving conversion between different fermion species, such as Urca reactions in nuclear matter, become strongly enhanced and approach their ungapped level when the matter undergoes density oscillations of sufficiently large amplitude. We study both the neutrino emissivity and the bulk viscosity due to direct Urca processes in hadronic, hyperonic, and quark matter and discuss different superfluid and superconducting pairing patterns.