Crustal Cooling of Neutron Stars in Low-Mass X-ray Binaries

Abstract:  In X-ray binaries systems, accretion onto the neutron star acts to heat the crust through pycnonuclear reactions occurring deep within the crust. Once accretion drops to quiescent levels, X-ray observations show cooling of the crust over timescales of weeks to years. The shape of the cooling curves depends on the structure and composition of the crust. I will review observations of systems that show this crustal cooling, and discuss implications for properties of the crust.