Thomas-Fermi calculations of atoms and matter in magnetic neutron stars. II. Finite temperature effects

We present numerical calculations of the equation of state for dense matter in high magnetic fields, using a temperature-dependent Thomas-Fermi theory with a magnetic field that takes all Landau levels into account. Free energies for atoms and matter are also calculated, as well as profiles of the electron density as a function of distance from the atomic nucleus for representative values of the magnetic field strength, total matter density, and temperature. The Landau shell structure, which is so prominent in cold dense matter in high magnetic fields, is still clearly present at finite temperature as long as it is less than approximately 1/10 of the cyclotron energy. This structure is reflected in an oscillatory behavior of the equation of state and other thermodynamic properties of dense matter and hence also in profiles of the density and pressure as functions of depth in the surface layers of magnetic neutron stars. These oscillations are completely smoothed out by thermal effects at temperaturss of the order of the cyclotron energy or higher.