The key factor to determine the relation between radius and tidal deformability of neutron stars: slope of symmetry energy

Abstract

The constraints on tidal deformability $\Lambda$ of neutron stars are first extracted from GW170817 by LIGO and Virgo Collaborations but the relation between radius $R$ and tidal deformability $\Lambda$ is still nuder debate. Using an isospin-dependent parameterized equation of state (EOS), we study the relation between $R$ and $\Lambda$ of neutron stars and its dependence on parameters of symmetry energy $E_{\rm sym}$ and EOS of symmetric nuclear matter $E_0$ when the mass is fixed as $1.4$ $M_\odot$, $1.0$ $M_\odot$, and $1.8$ $M_\odot$, respectively. We find that, though the changes of high order parameters of $E_{\rm sym}$ and $E_0$ can shift the individual values of $R_{1.4}$ and $\Lambda_{1.4}$ to different values, the $R_{1.4}\sim\Lambda_{1.4}$ relation approximately locates at the same fitted curve. The slope of symmetry energy $L$ plays the dominated role in determining the $R_{1.4}\sim\Lambda_{1.4}$ relation. By checking the mass dependence of $R\sim\Lambda$ relation, the well fitted $R\sim\Lambda$ relation for 1.4 $M_\odot$ is broken for massive neutron stars.