Structure and Stability of Charm Quark Stars

In this work, we investigate the properties of quark matter, which is electrically neutral and in chemical equilibrium. It has been hypothesized that such matter could exist in the ultradense cores of neutron stars and could also lead to the existence of a new class of compact stars known as (strange) quark stars. The focus of our investigation is on the possible existence of such objects which, in addition to up, down, and strange quarks, also contain charm quarks. Such objects could possibly represent a new family of stable compact stars if the phase transition for charm quark production is discontinuous (Maxwell-like). The theoretical conditions under which stable charm stars could form are investigated and the implications of the existence of such objects for astrophysics is pointed out.