The role of the symmetry energy and the neutron-matter stiffness on the tidal deformability of a cold nonaccreted neutron star is studied using a set of unified equations of state. Based on the nuclear energy-density functional theory, these equations of state provide a thermodynamically consistent treatment of all regions of the star and were calculated using functionals that were precision fitted to experimental and theoretical nuclear data. Predictions are compared to constraints inferred from the recent detection of the gravitational-wave signal GW170817 from a binary neutron-star merger and from observations of the electromagnetic counterparts.

The role of the crust on the tidal deformability of a cold nonaccreted neutron star is studied using the recent unified equation of state BSk24. This equation of state, which is based on the nuclear-energy density functional theory, provides a thermodynamically consistent description of all stellar regions. Results obtained with this equation of state are compared to those calculated for a putative neutron star made entirely of homogeneous matter. The presence of the crustal layers is thus found to significantly reduce the Love number k 2 , especially for low-mass stars. However, this reduction mainly arises from the increase in the stellar radius almost independently of the equation of state. This allows for a simple analytic estimate of k 2 for realistic neutron stars using the equation of state of homogeneous matter only.

The role of dense-matter properties in the tidal deformability of a cold nonaccreted neutron star is further investigated. Using the set of Brussels-Montreal unified equations of state, we have computed the gravitoelectric Love numbers k and the gravitomagnetic Love numbers j up to = 5. Their relative importance and their sensitivity to the symmetry energy and the neutron-matter stiffness are numerically assessed. Their impact on the phase of the gravitational-wave signal emitted by binary neutron star inspirals is also discussed.

The role of the symmetry energy on the internal constitution and the global structure of a cold nonaccreted neutron star is studied using a set of unified equations of state. Based on the nuclear energy-density functional theory, these equations of state provide a thermodynamically consistent treatment of all regions of the star and were calculated using the four different Brussels-Montreal functionals BSk22, BSk24, BSk25 and BSk26. Our predictions are compared to various constraints inferred from astrophysical observations including the recent detection of the gravitational wave signal GW170817 from a binary neutronstar merger.

Space-based gravitational-wave detectors offer new prospects for probing the interior of white dwarfs in binary systems through the imprints of tidal effects on the gravitational-wave signal. Some of the binaries that will be observed could have evolved for long enough for the white dwarfs to be at least partially crystallized. The apsidal motion constant k 2 (also called the second gravitoelectric Love number) of a cold crystallized white dwarf is computed in full general relativity considering different compositions. The elasticity of the crystallized core is found to systematically reduce the tidal deformability, especially for low-mass stars. Fully relativistic results are compared to those obtained in Newtonian gravity. It is shown that the relativistic correction to the observable tidal deformability k 2 R 5 (where R is the stellar radius) is negligible for low-mass white dwarfs but becomes increasingly important for more massive white dwarfs. When approaching the maximum mass, the application of Newtonian theory instead of general relativity leads to dramatic errors. The case of eccentric binaries, for which the precession of the periastron causes a frequency splitting of the gravitational-wave signal depending on the apsidal motion constants of the two stars, is investigated. Future measurements of the precession rate by the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna, which is planned to be in operation within the next decade, could potentially provide estimates of the individual masses. It is found that the errors incurred by the neglect of the elasticity of the crystallized core could be very large, especially for low-mass white dwarfs. Gravitational-wave observations could thus provide a new way to study the crystallization of white dwarfs.