BINSKY · All-sky search for continuous gravitational waves from neutron stars in binary systems

All-sky search for continuous gravitational waves from neutron stars in binary systems

Gravitational waves from compact binary coalescences are now routinely detected, but other types of gravitational waves await to be discovered. Rotating neutron stars with an asymmetry around their rotating axis give rise to continuous gravitational waves, which differ from the already detected gravitational waves in their long duration (present during the entire observing runs) and expected weaker gravitational-wave amplitude (only through the integration of many months or years of data, dependent on the asymmetry of the source, can the signal-to-noise ratio grow to detectable strengths). Although many searches for continuous waves have been carried out, no detection has been achieved yet. The first detection of a continuous gravitational wave could be the next major discovery in gravitational-wave astronomy, probing different physics such as: the behaviour of matter at extreme conditions; the equation of state at densities above nuclear density that cannot be reached in any laboratory; the geometrical shape of neutron stars; and fundamental physics with tests of general relativity. To date, only ~2800 neutron stars have been detected but it is believed that there are around hundreds of millions in the Milky Way. More than half of the known neutron stars that are located in the sensitive frequency region of the gravitational-wave detectors are part of binary systems. Neutron stars in binary systems may be more likely to have the asymmetries needed to emit detectable continuous waves, since they might be accreting matter from their companions, a process that provides a natural asymmetry. This increases the chances of detecting a continuous wave signal, making all-sky searches of continuous waves from unknown binary systems one of the most promising scenarios. All-sky surveys for continuous wave signals from unknown neutron stars in binary systems are probably the most challenging search in gravitational-wave science. For this reason, they have been carried out seldom and at lower sensitivity compared to surveys from signals from isolated neutron stars. With this project we want to address this deficiency, developing a method to carry out these searches with improved sensitivity and decreased computational cost. Furthermore, this project aims to make the first detection of a continuous wave signal, searching for signals from unknown neutron stars in binary systems.

Текст от CORDIS, на английски · Данни: CORDIS, © Европейски съюз