Gravitational-Wave Asteroseismology: Probing Deconfined Quark Matter in Neutron Stars

The first detection of gravitational waves from a binary neutron-star collision in 2017 marked an historic moment in the field of astronomy. Observed across the electromagnetic spectrum as well as in gravitational waves, this landmark event unveiled a wealth of scientific discoveries. Yet a central mystery remains: what is the true nature of matter at the extreme densities inside neutron stars, where exotic states such as deconfined quark matter may emerge?Neutron stars are natural laboratories for probing this frontier. Much like the Moon raises waves in Earth's oceans, neutron stars in binaries experience dynamical tides, where the orbital motion drives vibrational modes within the star. These oscillations leave subtle but distinctive imprints on the gravitational-wave signal. Among them, the newly identified interface modes—which arise from a transition to deconfined quark matter—may already be within reach of upcoming upgrades to the LIGO gravitational-wave detectors. This research aims to identify them for the first time.QuarkWave will pioneer the first state-of-the-art waveform model of the dynamical tide and conduct targeted searches for interface modes in gravitational-wave data. By combining relativistic theory, high-performance computing and advanced Bayesian and machine-learning techniques, this project will quantify what these modes can reveal about the properties of dense nuclear matter. The outcomes will directly support the design and science exploitation of next-generation observatories—the Einstein Telescope in Europe and Cosmic Explorer in the US.