Home > Research > Publications & Outputs > Tests of general relativity with binary black h...

Electronic data

  • o3a_tgr

    Rights statement: © 2021 American Physical Society

    Accepted author manuscript, 2.42 MB, PDF document

    Available under license: CC BY-NC: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License

Links

Text available via DOI:

View graph of relations

Tests of general relativity with binary black holes from the second LIGO-Virgo gravitational-wave transient catalog

Research output: Contribution to Journal/MagazineJournal articlepeer-review

Published

Standard

Tests of general relativity with binary black holes from the second LIGO-Virgo gravitational-wave transient catalog. / LIGO Scientific Collaboration and Virgo Collaboration.
In: Physical Review D, Vol. 103, No. 12, 122002, 15.06.2021.

Research output: Contribution to Journal/MagazineJournal articlepeer-review

Harvard

LIGO Scientific Collaboration and Virgo Collaboration 2021, 'Tests of general relativity with binary black holes from the second LIGO-Virgo gravitational-wave transient catalog', Physical Review D, vol. 103, no. 12, 122002. https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevD.103.122002

APA

LIGO Scientific Collaboration and Virgo Collaboration (2021). Tests of general relativity with binary black holes from the second LIGO-Virgo gravitational-wave transient catalog. Physical Review D, 103(12), Article 122002. https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevD.103.122002

Vancouver

LIGO Scientific Collaboration and Virgo Collaboration. Tests of general relativity with binary black holes from the second LIGO-Virgo gravitational-wave transient catalog. Physical Review D. 2021 Jun 15;103(12):122002. doi: 10.1103/PhysRevD.103.122002

Author

LIGO Scientific Collaboration and Virgo Collaboration. / Tests of general relativity with binary black holes from the second LIGO-Virgo gravitational-wave transient catalog. In: Physical Review D. 2021 ; Vol. 103, No. 12.

Bibtex

@article{5e16e39027774b09b3be80cf69a3f684,
title = "Tests of general relativity with binary black holes from the second LIGO-Virgo gravitational-wave transient catalog",
abstract = "Gravitational waves enable tests of general relativity in the highly dynamical and strong-field regime. Using events detected by LIGO-Virgo up to 1 October 2019, we evaluate the consistency of the data with predictions from the theory. We first establish that residuals from the best-fit waveform are consistent with detector noise, and that the low- and high-frequency parts of the signals are in agreement. We then consider parametrized modifications to the waveform by varying post-Newtonian and phenomenological coefficients, improving past constraints by factors of ∼2; we also find consistency with Kerr black holes when we specifically target signatures of the spin-induced quadrupole moment. Looking for gravitational-wave dispersion, we tighten constraints on Lorentz-violating coefficients by a factor of ∼2.6 and bound the mass of the graviton to mg≤1.76×10−23  eV/c2 with 90% credibility. We also analyze the properties of the merger remnants by measuring ringdown frequencies and damping times, constraining fractional deviations away from the Kerr frequency to δ^f220=0.03+0.38−0.35 for the fundamental quadrupolar mode, and δ^f221=0.04+0.27−0.32 for the first overtone; additionally, we find no evidence for postmerger echoes. Finally, we determine that our data are consistent with tensorial polarizations through a template-independent method. When possible, we assess the validity of general relativity based on collections of events analyzed jointly. We find no evidence for new physics beyond general relativity, for black hole mimickers, or for any unaccounted systematics.",
author = "{LIGO Scientific Collaboration and Virgo Collaboration} and Matthew Pitkin",
note = "{\textcopyright} 2021 American Physical Society ",
year = "2021",
month = jun,
day = "15",
doi = "10.1103/PhysRevD.103.122002",
language = "English",
volume = "103",
journal = "Physical Review D",
issn = "1550-7998",
publisher = "American Physical Society",
number = "12",

}

RIS

TY - JOUR

T1 - Tests of general relativity with binary black holes from the second LIGO-Virgo gravitational-wave transient catalog

AU - LIGO Scientific Collaboration and Virgo Collaboration

AU - Pitkin, Matthew

N1 - © 2021 American Physical Society

PY - 2021/6/15

Y1 - 2021/6/15

N2 - Gravitational waves enable tests of general relativity in the highly dynamical and strong-field regime. Using events detected by LIGO-Virgo up to 1 October 2019, we evaluate the consistency of the data with predictions from the theory. We first establish that residuals from the best-fit waveform are consistent with detector noise, and that the low- and high-frequency parts of the signals are in agreement. We then consider parametrized modifications to the waveform by varying post-Newtonian and phenomenological coefficients, improving past constraints by factors of ∼2; we also find consistency with Kerr black holes when we specifically target signatures of the spin-induced quadrupole moment. Looking for gravitational-wave dispersion, we tighten constraints on Lorentz-violating coefficients by a factor of ∼2.6 and bound the mass of the graviton to mg≤1.76×10−23  eV/c2 with 90% credibility. We also analyze the properties of the merger remnants by measuring ringdown frequencies and damping times, constraining fractional deviations away from the Kerr frequency to δ^f220=0.03+0.38−0.35 for the fundamental quadrupolar mode, and δ^f221=0.04+0.27−0.32 for the first overtone; additionally, we find no evidence for postmerger echoes. Finally, we determine that our data are consistent with tensorial polarizations through a template-independent method. When possible, we assess the validity of general relativity based on collections of events analyzed jointly. We find no evidence for new physics beyond general relativity, for black hole mimickers, or for any unaccounted systematics.

AB - Gravitational waves enable tests of general relativity in the highly dynamical and strong-field regime. Using events detected by LIGO-Virgo up to 1 October 2019, we evaluate the consistency of the data with predictions from the theory. We first establish that residuals from the best-fit waveform are consistent with detector noise, and that the low- and high-frequency parts of the signals are in agreement. We then consider parametrized modifications to the waveform by varying post-Newtonian and phenomenological coefficients, improving past constraints by factors of ∼2; we also find consistency with Kerr black holes when we specifically target signatures of the spin-induced quadrupole moment. Looking for gravitational-wave dispersion, we tighten constraints on Lorentz-violating coefficients by a factor of ∼2.6 and bound the mass of the graviton to mg≤1.76×10−23  eV/c2 with 90% credibility. We also analyze the properties of the merger remnants by measuring ringdown frequencies and damping times, constraining fractional deviations away from the Kerr frequency to δ^f220=0.03+0.38−0.35 for the fundamental quadrupolar mode, and δ^f221=0.04+0.27−0.32 for the first overtone; additionally, we find no evidence for postmerger echoes. Finally, we determine that our data are consistent with tensorial polarizations through a template-independent method. When possible, we assess the validity of general relativity based on collections of events analyzed jointly. We find no evidence for new physics beyond general relativity, for black hole mimickers, or for any unaccounted systematics.

U2 - 10.1103/PhysRevD.103.122002

DO - 10.1103/PhysRevD.103.122002

M3 - Journal article

VL - 103

JO - Physical Review D

JF - Physical Review D

SN - 1550-7998

IS - 12

M1 - 122002

ER -