Secular instability of g-modes in rotating neutron stars

Abstract

Gravitational radiation tends to drive gravity modes in rotating neutron stars to become unstable. For an inviscid star, the instability sets in when the rotation frequency is about 0.7 times the corresponding mode frequency of the non-rotating star. Neutron stars with spin frequencies ≳100 Hz are susceptible to this instability, with a growth time of the order of years. However, it is likely that viscous dissipation suppresses the instability except for a narrow range of temperatures around 109K. We also show that the viscosity-driven instability of g-modes is absent.