Constraining properties of neutron stars with heavy-ion reactions in terrestrial laboratories
Abstract
Heavy-ion reactions provide a unique means to investigate the equation of state (EOS) of neutron-rich nuclear matter, especially the density dependence of the nuclear symmetry energy Esym(). The latter plays an important role in understanding many key issues in both nuclear physics and astrophysics. Recent analyses of heavy-ion reactions have already put a stringent constraint on the Esym() around the saturation density. This subsequently allowed us to constrain significantly the radii and cooling mechanisms of neutron stars as well as the possible changing rate of the gravitational constant G.
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