Thermal structure of magnetized neutron-star envelopes

The influence of a strong magnetic field on the thermal structure of neutron-star envelopes is investigated using the most recent calculations of radiative and electronic thermal conductivities. In particular, the relation between the core temperature, Tsub(c), and the heat flux, F, is considered. For a purely vertical magnetic field it is found that quantum effects will enhance (relative to the zero-field case) the heat flux, for a fixed core temperature, by a factor <approx. 3. It is further argued that the anisotropic nature of electron transport in a magnetic field will suppress the heat flux for a more realistic field geometry by a factor <approx. 3. Thus the magnetic field is expected to have only a minor effect on neutron-star cooling. (author)