Scientists at Indiana University in Bloomington (USA) have found that a theoretical substance formed in the depths of neutron stars called nuclear pasta may be the most durable substance in the universe. This was reported in Science News magazine.
Nuclear paste is a form of degenerate gas - a gas whose properties are determined by quantum mechanical effects due to the identity of its particles. This type of matter is formed in the inner layer of the crust of neutron stars between the surface and the quark-gluon plasma, consisting of chaotically moving quarks, antiquarks and gluons, and is a transitional state of matter. The density here is not high enough to destroy nucleons and create a quark-gluon plasma, but protons overcome the forces of mutual repulsion and form unstable structures in the form of long spaghetti and even "lasagne sheets" immersed in the liquid phase of neutrons.
In the course of computer simulations, the researchers estimated the force that must be expended to stretch the nuclear paste in the form of "lasagna". It turned out that this substance is stronger than any other known substance in the Universe.
Scientists hope that in the future it will be possible to prove the presence of nuclear paste. Internal structures can support the existence of high "mountains" on the surface of the neutron star. Because of the strong gravity, the height of these mountains is usually no more than a few centimeters, however, it has been shown that nuclear paste can contribute to the appearance of larger irregularities with a height of several tens of centimeters. If the neutron star is spinning rapidly, then such irregularities will form gravitational waves, which can be detected using the LIGO detector.
LIGO is a laser-interferometric gravitational-wave observatory, whose employees on September 14, 2015 recorded space-time disturbances from the merger of a pair of black holes. The existence of gravitational waves is one of the predictions of general relativity. Their discovery confirms not only the latter, but is also considered one of the proofs of the existence of black holes.
