Probing nuclear superfluidity with neutron stars

Nicolas Chamel

No sooner did Bardeen, Cooper, and Schrieffer (BCS) publish their theory of superconductivity than Migdal speculated about nuclear superfluidity in the interior of neutron stars. The discovery of the first pulsars and the subsequent observation of frequency glitches followed by very long relaxation times provided the first evidence for the presence of superfluids in neutron stars. Nuclear superfluidity is expected to play a role in other observed astrophysical phenomena such as neutron star cooling. Some recent developments in the understanding of superfluidity in neutron stars will be briefly reviewed.