Relativistic Gravitation and Astrophysics

来自天体物理源的引力波的可能探测将为天文学打开一扇新的窗口，并为爱因斯坦的广义相对论提供新的测试。解释观测结果和推进这一新领域将需要根据理论计算出准确的理论引力波形。这个项目将努力提供所需的波形，通过以一种被称为后牛顿方法的近似方法系统地求解爱因斯坦方程。基于高阶后牛顿方法的新诊断工具的开发将继续下去，以阐明黑洞和中子星双星旋涡数值模拟的物理内容。还将研究如何使用引力波数据来测试替代的引力理论。这包括测试标量张量替代理论和引力子具有质量的理论，方法是观察来自令人振奋的致密双星的引力波。这样的测试可以以全新的方式验证爱因斯坦的理论。研究生和本科生以及博士后研究人员的教育和培训将被纳入研究计划。PI将继续就与这项研究相关的主题进行公开演讲，为更广泛的社区带来对爱因斯坦思想的有效性和影响的理解。他将为网络杂志《相对论中的生活评论》准备一篇关于实验引力的综合评论文章，更新他的畅销书《爱因斯坦是对的吗？》并通过提供利用引力波测试基础物理的信息的网页来增强他目前的网站。随着依赖于这些计算的引力波观测成为现实，运动方程和引力波形式的工作将影响天文学领域。后牛顿诊断学的研究将促进后牛顿专家和数值相对论专家之间的更紧密联系，导致对双星末期重要阶段的更真实的模拟。

The likely detection of gravitational waves from astrophysical sources will open a new window for astronomy and provide new tests of Einstein's theory of general relativity. Interpreting the observations and advancing this new field will require accurate theoretical gravitational waveforms calculated from the theory. This project will endeavor to provide the needed waveforms, by solving Einstein's equations systematically in an approximation known as the post-Newtonian method. Development of a novel diagnostic tool, based on higher-order post-Newtonian methods, to elucidate the physical content of numerical simulations of black-hole and neutron-star binary inspiral will be continued. Ways to use gravitational-wave data to test alternative theories of gravity will also be studied. This includes testing the scalar-tensor alternative theories and theories in which the graviton has a mass, by observing gravitational waves from inspiralling compact binaries. Such tests could provide verification of Einstein's theory in entirely new regimes.Education and training of graduate and undergraduate students and of a post-doctoral researcher will be integrated into the research program. The PI will continue to give public lectures on topics related to this research, bringing understanding of the validity and implications of Einstein's ideas to the broader community. He will prepare an update of his comprehensive review article on experimental gravitation for the web-based journal Living Reviews in Relativity, update his popular book ``Was Einstein Right?'' and enhance his current website with web pages providing information on testing fundamental physics with gravitational waves. The work on equations of motion and gravitational wave forms will impact the field of astronomy, as gravitation-wave observations, which rely upon these calculations, become a reality. The research on post-Newtonian diagnostics will foster closer ties between the post-Newtonian experts and numerical relativity experts, leading to more realistic simulations of the important final phase of binary inspiral.