Characterizing Transient Gravitational Waves

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The LIGO gravitational wave detectors are currently undergoing a major upgrade, with the goal of improving the sensitivity by an order of magnitude. But it takes more than lasers, mirrors and photodiodes to detect gravitational waves. Another key component is the signal processing used to tease the faint gravitational wave signals out of the instrument noise. The research supported by this award seeks to develop tools that will enhance our ability to detect and characterize transient gravitational wave signals. The initial searches for gravitational waves have taught us that non-Gaussian features in the data, such as noise transients or ``glitches'', impair our ability to detect weak signals. Our goal is to develop powerful new techniques that can help separate gravitational wave signals from instrument artifacts. The detection of gravitational waves will allow a host of science questions to be addressed. Foremost among these will be whether the signals detected conform to the predictions of Einstein's theory of general relativity. This award will support the development of robust techniques for identifying departures from general relativity using LIGO/Virgo data.The LIGO project presents young researchers and students with a wonderful opportunity to participate in the birth of a new observation science that is poised to make discoveries that will revolutionize astronomy and deliver unique insights into some of the Universe's most exotic phenomena. The research program supported by this award offers tremendous opportunities for graduate and undergraduate students: the blend of creative activities associated with the development of sophisticated and innovative data analysis techniques, combined with hands on exposure to running existing search pipelines and working with production level computer code will provide excellent training for the next generation of gravitational wave astronomers. These skills are transferable and highly sought after in other fields: recent graduates from the Montana State gravitational wave astronomy group have found employment as national security intelligence analysts and in the medical research field of bioinfomatics.