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arXiv · 0902.0136

An improved analytical description of inspiralling and coalescing black-hole binaries

Thibault Damour·Alessandro Nagar
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Abstract

We present an analytical formalism, within the Effective-One-Body framework, which predicts gravitational-wave signals from inspiralling and coalescing black-hole binaries that agree, within numerical errors, with the results of the currently most accurate numerical relativity simulations for several different mass ratios. In the equal-mass case, the gravitational wave energy flux predicted by our formalism agrees, within numerical errors, with the most accurate numerical-relativity energy flux. We think that our formalism opens a realistic possibility of constructing a sufficiently accurate, large bank of gravitational wave templates, as needed both for detection and data analysis of (non spinning) coalescing binary black holes.

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Thibault Damour, Alessandro Nagar. 2009-03-19. An improved analytical description of inspiralling and coalescing black-hole binaries. https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevd.79.081503

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