Maximal Masses of White Dwarfs for Polytropes in $R^2$ Gravity and Theoretical Constraints

Understand

We examine the Chandrasekhar limit for white dwarfs in $f(R)$ gravity, with a simple polytropic equation of state describing stellar matter.

• We use the most popular $f(R)$ gravity model, namely the $f(R)=R+\alpha R^2$ gravity, and calculate the parameters of the stellar configurations with polytropic equation of state of the form $p=K\rho^{1+1/n}$ for various values of the parameter $n$.
• In order to simplify our analysis we use the equivalent Einstein frame form of $R^2$-gravity which is basically a scalar-tensor theory with well-known potential for the scalar field.
• In this description one can use simple approximations for the scalar field $\phi$ leaving only the potential term for it.