Constrain neutron star properties with SpiRIT experiment

Both Neutron star (NS) and the core of nucleus are made up of nuclear matter. If the bulk properties of nuclear matter are understood, this knowledge can be extrapolated to predict neutron star properties. A particularly important parameter is the density dependence of the symmetry energy of neutron-rich nuclear matter. A way to constrain nuclear symmetry energy is through the measurement of π⁺/π^- ratio in heavy-ion collision. Since pion are only generated in the high density region, it serves as a proxy to probe the amount of high density interactions inside the core. This goal is achieved with the SpiRIT experiment yielding a symmetry energy values of 52+13 MeV at 1.5 times the saturation energy (rho_0).  By combining with the symmetry energy values obtained at low density, I will present studies on the neutron star properties applying the experimental symmetry energy functional to the Tolman–Oppenheimer–Volk­­­­off (TOV) equation.