arXiv subjects

Arnab Dhani

Publications and source records attributed to Arnab Dhani.

25 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2022

Multipole moments on the common horizon in a binary-black-hole simulation

We construct the covariantly defined multipole moments on the common horizon of an equal-mass, non-spinning, quasicircular binary-black-hole system. We see a strong correlation between these multipole moments and the gravitational waveform. We find that the multipole moments are well described by the fundamental quasinormal modes at sufficiently late times. For each multipole moment, at least two fundamental modes of different $\ell$ are detectable in the best model. These models provide faithful estimates of the true mass and spin of the remnant black hole. We also show that by including overtones, the $\ell=m=2$ mass multipole moment admits an excellent quasinormal-mode description at all times after the merger. This demonstrates the perhaps surprising power of perturbation theory near the merger.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2022

Constraining runaway dilaton models using joint gravitational-wave and electromagnetic observations

With the advent of gravitational-wave astronomy it has now been possible to constrain modified theories of gravity that were invoked to explain the dark energy. In a class of dilaton models, distances to cosmic sources inferred from electromagnetic and gravitational wave observations would differ due to the presence of a friction term. In such theories, the ratio of the Newton's constant to the fine structure constant varies with time. In this paper we explore the degree to which it will be possible to test such models. If collocated sources (e.g. supernovae and binary neutron star mergers), but not necessarily multimessengers, can be identified by electromagnetic telescopes and gravitational-wave detectors one can probe if light and gravitational radiation are subject to the same laws of propagation over cosmological distances. This helps in constraining the variation of Newton's constant relative to fine-structure constant. The next generation of gravitational wave detectors, such as the Cosmic Explorer and Einstein Telescope, in tandem with the Vera Rubin Observatory and gamma ray observatories such as the Fermi Space Observatory will be able to detect or constrain such variations at the level of a few parts in 100. We apply this method to GW170817 with distances inferred by the LIGO and Virgo detectors and the observed Kilonova.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2021

Overtones, mirror modes, and mode-mixing in binary black hole mergers

Gravitational waves emitted in the aftermath of a black hole binary coalescence have characteristic complex frequencies called quasinormal modes (QNMs). These can be used to test the nature of the merger remnant, e.g. a test of the black hole "no-hair" theorem. The relative excitation amplitudes of the QNMs contain information about the progenitor system and can be employed to test the consistency between the pre- and post-merger signals. The post-merger signal from numerical relativity (NR) simulations of binary black holes exhibit a rich structure that has to be understood to fully exploit the information contained therein. In this study, we examine the importance of \emph{overtones} and \emph{mirror} modes for a set of mass ratios of non-spinning black hole binaries and a host of multipole modes corresponding to spherical harmonic indices $l\leq4$ and $m\leq3.$ We find that the first overtone is most important in the leading mode for a given $m$ and decreases for sub-dominant modes. The contribution of the fundamental mirror mode is most significant for $m=1$ and increases with mass ratio, although the model systematics are not affected significantly by mirror modes. Mode-mixing is the dominant effect for the sub-leading modes of a given $m$ and minimally affects the leading mode.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2020

Dark Sirens to Resolve the Hubble-Lemaître Tension

The planned sensitivity upgrades to the LIGO and Virgo facilities could uniquely identify host galaxies of dark sirens-compact binary coalescences without any electromagnetic counterparts-within a redshift of z = 0.1. This is aided by the higher order spherical harmonic modes present in the gravitational-wave signal, which also improve distance estimation. In conjunction, sensitivity upgrades and higher modes will facilitate an accurate, independent measurement of the host galaxy's redshift in addition to the luminosity distance from the gravitational wave observation to infer the Hubble-Lemaître constant H0 to better than a few percent in five years. A possible Voyager upgrade or third generation facilities would further solidify the role of dark sirens for precision cosmology in the future.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2020

Importance of mirror modes in binary black hole ringdown waveform

The post-merger signal in binary black hole merger is described by linear, black-hole perturbation theory. Historically, this has been modeled using the dominant positive-frequency (corotating) fundamental mode. Recently, there has been a renewed effort in modeling the post-merger waveform using higher, positive-frequency overtones in an attempt to achieve greater accuracy in describing the waveform at earlier times using linear perturbation theory. It has been shown that the inclusion of higher overtones can shift the linear regime to the peak of $(l,m)=(2,2)$ spherical harmonic mode. In this work, we show that the inclusion of negative-frequency (counterrotating) modes, called 'mirror' modes, extends the validity of linear perturbation theory to even earlier times, with far lower systematic uncertainties in the model in recovering the remnant parameters at these early times. A good description of the signal at early times also enables for a greater signal-to-noise ratio to be accumulated in the ringdown phase, thereby, allowing for a more accurate measurement of remnant parameters and tests of general relativity.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2019

The propagation delay in the timing of a pulsar orbiting a supermassive black hole

The observation of a pulsar closely orbiting the galactic center supermassive black hole would open the window for an accurate determination of the black hole parameters and for new tests of General Relativity. An important relativistic effect which has to be taken into account in the timing model is the propagation delay of the pulses in the gravitational field of the black hole. Due to the extreme mass ratio of the pulsar and the supermassive back hole we use the test particle limit to derive an exact analytical formula for the propagation delay in a Schwarzschild spacetime. We then compare this result to the propagation delays derived in the usually employed post-Newtonian approximation, in particular to the Shapiro delay up to the second post-Newtonian order. For edge-on orbits we also consider modifications of the Shapiro delay which take the lensing effects into account. Our results are then used to assess the accuracy of the different orders of the post-Newtonian approximation of the propagation delay. This comparison indicates that for (nearly) edge-on orbits the new exact delay formula should be used.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2015

Long-term optical flux and colour variability in quasars

We have used optical V and R band observations from the Massive Compact Halo Object (MACHO) project on a sample of 59 quasars behind the Magellanic clouds to study their long term optical flux and colour variations. These quasars lying in the redshift range of 0.2 < z < 2.8 and having apparent V band magnitudes between 16.6 and 20.1 mag have observations ranging from 49 to 1353 epochs spanning over 7.5 years with frequency of sampling between 2 to 10 days. All the quasars show variability during the observing period. The normalized excess variance (Fvar) in V and R bands are in the range 0.2% < Fvar < 1.6% and 0.1% < Fvar < 1.5%. In a large fraction of the sources, Fvar is larger in the V-band compared to the R-band. From the z-transformed discrete cross correlation function analysis, we find that there is no lag between the V and R-band variations. Adopting the Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) approach, and properly taking into account the correlation between the errors in colours and magnitudes, it is found that majority of the sources show a bluer when brighter trend, while a minor fraction of quasars show the opposite behaviour. This is similar to the results obtained from other two independent algorithms namely the weighted linear least squares fit (FITEXY) and the bivariate correlated errors and intrinsic scatter regression (BCES). However, the ordinary least squares (OLS) fit normally used in the colour variability studies of quasars, indicates that all the quasars studied here show a bluer when brighter trend. It is therefore very clear that OLS algorithm cannot be used for the study of colour variability in quasars.

astro-ph.GA↗