Compact charged stars

We investigate the possibility that charged compact objects could be the accelerators of high energy cosmic rays. In order to do so, we choose to first solve numerically a system of differential equations describing the structure of charged compact objects, including the generalization of the Tolman-Oppenheimer-Volkoff equation for this class of objects. We assume a polytropic equation of state for the fluid and, for simplicity, a linear relation between charge density and the fluid energy density. We obtain upper limits for the charge such objects can acquire and study the stability of these equilibrium configurations. (author)