Speaker
Description
Neutron star mergers create environments of hot, ultra-dense matter where the strong interaction governs the behavior but cannot be solved exactly or perturbatively using current methods. These collisions throw matter out of equilibrium and provide a unique laboratory to explore the phases and properties of dense matter. Simulations of neutron star mergers let us follow this matter in detail and link it to signals we can actually observe, like gravitational waves. Capturing the relevant physics in merger simulations is key to reducing uncertainties in what we infer from these signals.
I will focus on the role of neutrinos in merger environments. I will show how assumptions about the local neutrino population influence weak interactions and thereby impact the equation of state and the gravitational wave signal. I will also present first results on a comparison of neutrino distributions from a Monte Carlo neutrino scheme, which are not necessarily in thermal equilibrium, with Fermi-Dirac (thermally equilibrated) distributions. I will show the impact on the average energy, average absorption opacity, and net rate of neutrino/antineutrino absorption.
