Studies of Black Hole Binary Systems Using Time-Domain Perturbation Theory

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The emergent field of gravitational wave astronomy is undergoing a major transformation as a result of the now-routine detections of gravitational waves from a black hole and neutron star binary systems by the US LIGO detector alongside other international observatories. Observations of these waves from compact binary systems will be used to obtain additional information about the most mysterious objects in the Universe. LIGO has also generated significant spin-off technologies, and helped direct public and youth attention towards STEM disciplines. This research project aids in the development of the theory-based science that plays a very critical role in not only LIGO’s mission, but also that of next generation detectors. The main objective is to understand important aspects of black hole systems using theoretical and computational techniques. The project includes support for students and therefore directly contributes to student mentorship, traineeship and retention in an important STEM area. The computational skills that students develop are highly “portable”, and therefore will allow them access to a variety of career options, including in areas of great national need. Previous research projects by the PI have been discussed in the general media, and this work also has great potential at being successful for outreach to the general public. This research project will contribute to a number of challenging and important problems in the area of gravitational physics. The main objective is the development and application of an advanced computational model for the gravitational wave emission from a black hole binary system using point-particle perturbation theory. Significant contributions will be made to the development of fast and accurate models (effective-one-body, surrogate and other models) for gravitational waveform generation, that will positively impact the data analysis capabilities of current and future gravitational wave detectors (such as LIGO, next generation and even future space-borne missions, such as LISA). In addition, the planned work will bring about a much better understanding of the late-stage quasi-normal phase radiation from black hole binary systems. The project will also contribute to the gravitational wave data-analysis effort via the open and public Einstein@Home project. All the research activities in the context of this project will involve students and collaborations with other US and European research groups.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.