The missing link in gravitational-wave astronomy: A summary of discoveries waiting in the decihertz range
Résumé
Since 2015 the gravitational-wave observations of LIGO and Virgo have transformed our understanding of compact-object binaries. In the years to come, ground-based gravitational-wave observatories such as LIGO, Virgo, and their successors will increase in sensitivity, discovering thousands of stellar-mass binaries. In the 2030s, the space-based LISA will provide gravitational-wave observations of massive black holes binaries. Between the \sim 10–10$^{3}$ Hz band of ground-based observatories and the \sim 10^{-4}–10$^{− 1}$ Hz band of LISA lies the uncharted decihertz gravitational-wave band. We propose a Decihertz Observatory to study this frequency range, and to complement observations made by other detectors. Decihertz observatories are well suited to observation of intermediate-mass (\sim 10^{2}–10$^{4}$M$_{⊙}$) black holes; they will be able to detect stellar-mass binaries days to years before they merge, providing early warning of nearby binary neutron star mergers and measurements of the eccentricity of binary black holes, and they will enable new tests of general relativity and the Standard Model of particle physics. Here we summarise how a Decihertz Observatory could provide unique insights into how black holes form and evolve across cosmic time, improve prospects for both multimessenger astronomy and multiband gravitational-wave astronomy, and enable new probes of gravity, particle physics and cosmology.
Mots clés
Gravitational waves
Decihertz observatories
Multiband gravitational-wave astronomy
Multimessenger astronomy
Space-based detectors
Black holes
Neutron stars
White dwarfs
Stochastic backgrounds
Binary evolution
Intermediate-mass black holes
Tests of general relativity
Voyage 2050
black hole: binary
neutron star: binary
VIRGO
LIGO
LISA
cosmological model
general relativity
gravitational radiation: frequency
star: mass
binary: orbit
standard model
gravitation
detector: sensitivity
black hole: mass
binary: compact
binary: coalescence
gravitational radiation: emission
gravitational radiation detector
white dwarf
electromagnetic field: production
gravitational radiation: background
gravitational radiation: stochastic