Speed of Sound for Hadronic and Quark Phases in a Magnetic Field

Abstract

In this paper we calculate the speed of sound for three phases that may exist inside a magnetized hybrid neutron star at different density regions: A hadronic phase at low densities, quark-matter in the magnetic dual chiral density wave (MDCDW) phase at intermediate densities and a free-quark phase modeled by the MIT bag model at higher densities. It is found that the speed of sound exhibits a non-monotonic behavior, that goes from values smaller than the conformal limit ($c_s^2 < 1/3$) in the hadronic phase, to peak ($c_s^2 > 1/3$) in the MDCDW phase, to finally reach the conformal limit ($c_s^2 \sim 1/3$) at higher densities for quarks in the MIT bag model. Also, the anisotropic speed of sound in the presence of a magnetic field is derived from first principles. This is a consequence of the anisotropy in the system's pressures produced by the breaking of the rotational symmetry in the presence of a magnetic field. The role played by the lowest Landau level contribution in affecting the speed of sound in the magnetized phases is discussed.