Conversion of neutron stars to 2 + 1 flavor Nambu–Jona-Lasinio quark stars as a mechanism for gamma-ray bursts

Abstract

The phase transition from a neutron star to a quark star and its relation to gamma-ray bursts are investigated. A new model: the 2 + 1 flavor Nambu–Jona-Lasinio (NJL) model with the method of proper-time regularization (PTR) is utilized for the quark phase; while the Relativistic Mean Field (RMF) theory is used for the hadronic phase. The process of phase transition is studied by considering the chemical potential, paying special attention to the phase transition point and the emergence of strange quark matter. Characteristics of compact stars are illustrated, and the energy release during the phase transition is found to be [Formula: see text] erg.