Constraining the Nuclear Symmetry Energy with Multimessenger Resonant Shattering Flares

Much effort is devoted to measuring the nuclear symmetry energy through neutron star (NS) and nuclear observables. Since matter in the NS core may be nonhadronic, observables like radii and tidal deformability may not provide reliable constraints on properties of nucleonic matter. By performing the first consistent inference using ensembles of core and crust equations of state from astrophysical and nuclear data, we demonstrate that coincident timing of a resonant shattering flare (RSF) and gravitational wave signal during binary NS inspiral probes the crust-core transition region and provides constraints on the symmetry energy comparable to terrestrial nuclear experiments. We show that nuclear masses, RSFs, and measurements of NS radii and tidal deformabilities constrain different density ranges of the equation of state, providing complementary probes.

Automated summary

Efforts have been made to measure the nuclear symmetry energy through neutron star and nuclear observables. However, these observables like radii and tidal deformability may not accurately constrain properties of nucleonic matter due to the possible presence of nonhadronic matter in the neutron star core. By performing consistent inference using both astrophysical and nuclear data, it has been found that the coincident timing of a resonant shattering flare and gravitational wave signal during binary neutron star inspiral can probe the crust-core transition region and provide constraints on the symmetry energy comparable to terrestrial nuclear experiments. Different observables, such as nuclear masses, resonant shattering flares, and measurements of neutron star radii and tidal deformabilities, can constrain different density ranges of the equation of state, complementing each other.