Critical mass of neutron stars : a new view
Abstract
The issue of the critical mass of neutron stars, with respect to gravitational collapse to black holes, is reexamined from the perspective of thermal stability of quantum horizons. Postulating the existence of a tiny, embryonic, isolated horizon, hidden deep inside a gravitationally contracting neutron star, the critical mass is seen to emerge from the extrapolation of the criterion of thermal stability of quantum isolated horizons derived earlier by us, to such a `hidden' horizon, as a condition of its stability and growth (through formation of trapping or dynamical horizons), eventually leading to an equilibrium isolated horizon engulfing the entire star. The perspective is based on aspects of Loop Quantum Gravity, and in contrast to extant analyses in the neutron star literature, uses neither classical spacetime metrics nor details of strong neucleonic interactions at supranuclear densities, thus delineating the essential role of quantum gravitation in black hole formation.