A neutron star is composed mostly of neutrons (neutral particles) and contains a small fraction of protons (positively charged particles) and electrons (negatively charged particles), as well as nuclei. In the extreme density of a neutron star, many neutrons are free neutrons, meaning they are not bound in atomic nuclei and move freely within ...

Neutron stars are the dense remnants of the cores of high-mass stars which have undergone gravitational collapse. Shortly after the discovery of the neutron, Landau [1] proposed the idea of compact objects with densities greater than white dwarf stars.

Oct 24, 2019 · Neutron stars are the remnants of giant stars that died in a fiery explosion known as a supernova. After such an outburst, the cores of these former stars compact into an ultradense object...

Mar 22, 2025 · Neutron star, any of a class of extremely dense, compact stars thought to be composed primarily of neutrons. Neutron stars are typically about 20 km (12 miles) in diameter. Their masses range between 1.18 and 1.97 times that …

In physics and chemistry, a nucleon is either a proton or a neutron, considered in its role as a component of an atomic nucleus. The number of nucleons in a nucleus defines the atom's mass number (nucleon number). Until the 1960s, nucleons were thought to be elementary particles, not made up of smaller parts.

Sep 1, 1998 · Properties of dense nucleon matter and the structure of neutron stars are studied using variational chain summation methods and the new Argonne two-nucleon interaction, which provides an excellent fit to all of the nucleon-nucleon scattering data in the Nijmegen database.

Jan 15, 2021 · A neutron star is born when a massive star runs out of nuclear fuel. After all of the matter at the very center of the star has been transformed into iron or similar elements through nuclear fusion, it collapses under its own gravitational pressure and leaves an …

Mar 28, 2023 · These small, incredibly dense cores of exploded stars are neutron stars. They’re among the most bizarre objects in the universe. A typical neutron star has about 1.4 times our sun’s mass. And...

Neutron stars are some of the densest manifestations of massive objects in the universe. They are ideal astrophysical laboratories for testing theories of dense matter physics and provide connections among nuclear physics, particle physics, and astrophysics.

Jun 1, 2020 · By combining astrophysical observations and theoretical ab initio calculations in a model-independent way, we find that the inferred properties of matter in the cores of neutron stars with mass...