Effects of color superconductivity on the nucleation of quark matter in neutron stars

Abstract

Aims.We study the nucleation of quark matter drops at the center of cold deleptonized neutron stars. These drops can be made up of unpaired quark matter or of color-superconducting quark matter, depending on the details of the equations of state for quark and hadronic matter. The nature of the nucleated phase is relevant in determining the critical mass Mcr of hadronic stars above which a transition to a quark star (strange or hybrid) is possible.