Neutron Star Heating Constraints on Wave-Function Collapse Models

Spontaneous wave-function collapse models, like continuous spontaneous localization, are designed to suppress macroscopic superpositions while preserving microscopic quantum phenomena. An observable consequence of collapse models is spontaneous heating of massive objects. We calculate the collapse-induced heating rate of astrophysical objects, and the corresponding equilibrium temperature. We apply these results to neutron stars, the densest phase of baryonic matter in the Universe. Stronger collapse model parameters imply greater heating, allowing us to derive competitive bounds on model parameters using neutron star observational data, and to propose speculative bounds based on the capabilities of current and future astronomical surveys.

Figure 1

CSL parameter diagram. (Top) Zones formerly excluded by gravitational wave detectors (red) [29, 34], spontaneous x-ray emission (blue) [32], and insufficient macroscopic localization [35]. The value historically proposed by GRW [9] and the range put forward by Adler [36] are shown with black dots. The green line delineates the upper left regions that are excluded by currently observed neutron stars (solid line). More speculative bounds, obtained assuming various equilibrium temperatures for neutron stars, are showed as dashed green lines.