Physical Society Colloquium
Interview for Faculty Position
Neutron Stars on Fire:
Probing Spin and Magnetism with
Thermonuclear Flashes
Andrew Cumming
University of California at Santa Cruz
Neutron stars in low mass X-ray binaries are both fascinating physics
laboratories and an important part of our understanding of neutron star
rotation and magnetism. These neutron stars accrete hydrogen and helium from
a companion star, and light up for a few seconds every day as this fuel
ignites and burns in a spectacular thermonuclear runaway. There has been much
progress in our understanding of these systems in the last few years,
allowing probes of spin, magnetism, and nuclear physics at high temperatures
and densities. In this talk, I discuss the recent excitement, and describe
what we're learning about these stars.
Friday, February 20th 2004, 16:00
Ernest Rutherford Physics Building, R.E. Bell Conference Room (room 103)
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