Shear viscosity of $\beta$-stable nuclear matter

Abstract

Viscosity plays a critical role in determining the stability of rotating neutron stars. We report the results of a calculation of the shear viscosity of $\beta$~-~stable matter, carried out using an effective interaction based on a state-of-the-art nucleon-nucleon potential and the formalism of correlated basis functions. Within our approach the equation of state, determining the proton fraction, and the nucleon-nucleon scattering probability are consistently obtained from the same dynamical model. The results show that, while the neutron contribution to the viscosity is always dominant, above nuclear saturation density the electron contribution becomes appreciable.