Physics Colloquium

The quest to improve Gravitational wave detection, parameter inference algorithms, and multi-messenger astrophysics

This talk presents a suite of methodological improvements that push the performance boundaries of compact binary coalescence (CBC), multi-messenger astronomy, and continuous-wave (CW) searches. For high-mass CBC systems, we demonstrate an improvement in search sensitivity by incorporating higher-order waveform modes, thereby allowing access to higher-mass systems. In parallel, rapid parameter estimation techniques leveraging tensor products yield full precessing CBC parameter recovery in seconds rather than days - solving the problem of parameter estimation and opening the window for optimal search of precessing systems. These advances synergize with developments in electromagnetic counterparts: by utilizing the GW search techniques in gamma-ray burst (GRB) searches, we achieve a threefold increase in GRB sensitivity and a projected 50% rise in the number of detectable short GRBs, dramatically improving the odds of joint GW–GRB discoveries. Finally, we outline a method for fully coherent continuous-wave search using the novel Pruning algorithm, which efficiently navigates the parameter space without sacrificing coherence.

Join via Zoom:
https://caltech.zoom.us/j/84497014003
Meeting ID: 844 9701 4003

The colloquium is held in Feynman Lecture Hall, 201 E. Bridge.