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arXiv · 2504.13245

Schott term in the binding energy for compact binaries on circular orbits at fourth post-Newtonian order

David Trestini
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Abstract

The phasing for compact binary systems on circular orbits was obtained in arXiv:2304.11185 at fourth-and-a-half post-Newtonian (4.5PN) order thanks to two main ingredients: the 4PN conservative energy (associated to a nonradiative spacetime) in terms of the orbital frequency and the 4.5PN flux in terms of the waveform frequency (i.e., the half-frequency of the $(\ell,m)=(2,2)$ mode). When obtaining the phasing, a key physical postulate was made: the expression of the binding energy in terms of the waveform frequency was assumed to be identical to the expression of the conservative energy in terms of the orbital frequency. This postulate was necessary to ensure that the frequency evolution obtained through the flux-balance law (which involves the binding energy) was independent of the choice of spacetime foliation. In this work, I show that the binding energy entering the flux-balance law differs from the 4PN conservative energy by a 4PN pseudo-Schott term, associated with radiation-reaction effects due to gravitational tails. Unlike the usual Schott terms (at 2.5PN, 3.5PN and 4.5PN), the pseudo-Schott term is not a total derivative and is in fact hereditary, so it does not vanish for circular orbits. Remarkably, the binding energy thus obtained is in perfect agreement with the one obtained using the aforementioned physical postulate, which confirms that the 4.5PN phasing associated to the waveform frequency computed in arXiv:2304.11185 is indeed correct. This result is extended to the other Poincar\'e invariants, and `thermodynamic' relations between the binding energy and angular momentum are established. Finally, the chirp and phasing associated to the orbital frequency are presented at 4.5PN, including horizon-absorption effects.

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David Trestini. 2025-04-17. Schott term in the binding energy for compact binaries on circular orbits at fourth post-Newtonian order. https://doi.org/10.1103/lsbb-sv45

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