On the maximum mass of hyperonic neutron stars

Chiral Lagrangian and quark-meson coupling models of hyperon matter are used to estimate the maximum mass of neutron stars. Our relativistic calculations include, for the first time, both Hartree and Fock contributions in a consistent manner. Being related to the underlying quark structure of baryons, these models are considered to be good candidates for describing the dense core of neutron stars. Taking account of the known experimental constraints at saturation density, the equations of state deduced from these relativistic approaches cannot sustain a neutron star with a mass larger than 1.6–1.66M⊙.