The phenomenology of dynamical neutron star tides

Abstract

We introduce a phenomenological, physically motivated, model for the effective tidal deformability of a neutron star, adding the frequency dependence (associated with the star's fundamental mode of oscillation) that comes into play during the late stages of the binary inspiral. Testing the model against alternative descriptions, we demonstrate that it provides an accurate representation of the dynamical tide up to close to merger. The simplicity of the prescription makes it an attractive alternative for a gravitational-wave data analysis implementation, facilitating an inexpensive construction of a large number of templates covering the relevant parameter space.