47 research outputs found
Search for Gravitational Waves from Primordial Black Hole Binary Coalescences in the Galactic Halo
We use data from the second science run of the LIGO gravitational-wave
detectors to search for the gravitational waves from primordial black hole
(PBH) binary coalescence with component masses in the range 0.2--.
The analysis requires a signal to be found in the data from both LIGO
observatories, according to a set of coincidence criteria. No inspiral signals
were found. Assuming a spherical halo with core radius 5 kpc extending to 50
kpc containing non-spinning black holes with masses in the range 0.2--, we place an observational upper limit on the rate of PBH coalescence
of 63 per year per Milky Way halo (MWH) with 90% confidence.Comment: 7 pages, 4 figures, to be submitted to Phys. Rev.
Measurement of b hadron lifetimes in exclusive decays containing a J/psi in p-pbar collisions at sqrt(s)=1.96TeV
We report on a measurement of -hadron lifetimes in the fully reconstructed
decay modes B^+ -->J/Psi K+, B^0 --> J/Psi K*, B^0 --> J/Psi Ks, and Lambda_b
--> J/Psi Lambda using data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 4.3
, collected by the CDF II detector at the Fermilab Tevatron. The
measured lifetimes are B^+ = , B^0 = and Lambda_b = . The lifetime ratios are B^+/B^0 = and Lambda_b/B^0 = . These are the most precise determinations
of these quantities from a single experiment.Comment: revised version. accepted for PRL publicatio
Measurement of ZZ production in leptonic final states at {\surd}s of 1.96 TeV at CDF
In this paper we present a precise measurement of the total ZZ production
cross section in pp collisions at {\surd}s= 1.96 TeV, using data collected with
the CDF II detector corresponding to an integrated luminosity of approximately
6 fb-1. The result is obtained by combining separate measurements in the
four-charged (lll'l'), and two-charged-lepton and two-neutral-lepton (llvv)
decay modes of the Z. The combined measured cross section for pp {\to} ZZ is
1.64^(+0.44)_(-0.38) pb. This is the most precise measurement of the ZZ
production cross section in 1.96 TeV pp collisions to date.Comment: submitted to Phys. Rev. Let
Multi-messenger observations of a binary neutron star merger
On 2017 August 17 a binary neutron star coalescence candidate (later designated GW170817) with merger time 12:41:04 UTC was observed through gravitational waves by the Advanced LIGO and Advanced Virgo detectors. The Fermi Gamma-ray Burst Monitor independently detected a gamma-ray burst (GRB 170817A) with a time delay of ~1.7 s with respect to the merger time. From the gravitational-wave signal, the source was initially localized to a sky region of 31 deg2 at a luminosity distance of 40+8-8 Mpc and with component masses consistent with neutron stars. The component masses were later measured to be in the range 0.86 to 2.26 Mo. An extensive observing campaign was launched across the electromagnetic spectrum leading to the discovery of a bright optical transient (SSS17a, now with the IAU identification of AT 2017gfo) in NGC 4993 (at ~40 Mpc) less than 11 hours after the merger by the One- Meter, Two Hemisphere (1M2H) team using the 1 m Swope Telescope. The optical transient was independently detected by multiple teams within an hour. Subsequent observations targeted the object and its environment. Early ultraviolet observations revealed a blue transient that faded within 48 hours. Optical and infrared observations showed a redward evolution over ~10 days. Following early non-detections, X-ray and radio emission were discovered at the transient’s position ~9 and ~16 days, respectively, after the merger. Both the X-ray and radio emission likely arise from a physical process that is distinct from the one that generates the UV/optical/near-infrared emission. No ultra-high-energy gamma-rays and no neutrino candidates consistent with the source were found in follow-up searches. These observations support the hypothesis that GW170817 was produced by the merger of two neutron stars in NGC4993 followed by a short gamma-ray burst (GRB 170817A) and a kilonova/macronova powered by the radioactive decay of r-process nuclei synthesized in the ejecta
Localization and broadband follow-up of the gravitational-wave transient GW150914
A gravitational-wave (GW) transient was identified in data recorded by the Advanced Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory (LIGO) detectors on 2015 September 14. The event, initially designated G184098 and later given the name GW150914, is described in detail elsewhere. By prior arrangement, preliminary estimates of the time, significance, and sky location of the event were shared with 63 teams of observers covering radio, optical, near-infrared, X-ray, and gamma-ray wavelengths with ground- and space-based facilities. In this Letter we describe the low-latency analysis of the GW data and present the sky localization of the first observed compact binary merger. We summarize the follow-up observations reported by 25 teams via private Gamma-ray Coordinates Network circulars, giving an overview of the participating facilities, the GW sky localization coverage, the timeline, and depth of the observations. As this event turned out to be a binary black hole merger, there is little expectation of a detectable electromagnetic (EM) signature. Nevertheless, this first broadband campaign to search for a counterpart of an Advanced LIGO source represents a milestone and highlights the broad capabilities of the transient astronomy community and the observing strategies that have been developed to pursue neutron star binary merger events. Detailed investigations of the EM data and results of the EM follow-up campaign are being disseminated in papers by the individual teams
Gravitational Waves and Gamma-Rays from a Binary Neutron Star Merger: GW170817 and GRB 170817A
On 2017 August 17, the gravitational-wave event GW170817 was observed by the Advanced LIGO and Virgo detectors, and the gamma-ray burst (GRB) GRB 170817A was observed independently by the Fermi Gamma-ray Burst Monitor, and the Anti-Coincidence Shield for the Spectrometer for the International Gamma-Ray Astrophysics Laboratory. The probability of the near-simultaneous temporal and spatial observation of GRB 170817A and GW170817 occurring by chance is . We therefore confirm binary neutron star mergers as a progenitor of short GRBs. The association of GW170817 and GRB 170817A provides new insight into fundamental physics and the origin of short GRBs. We use the observed time delay of between GRB 170817A and GW170817 to: (i) constrain the difference between the speed of gravity and the speed of light to be between and times the speed of light, (ii) place new bounds on the violation of Lorentz invariance, (iii) present a new test of the equivalence principle by constraining the Shapiro delay between gravitational and electromagnetic radiation. We also use the time delay to constrain the size and bulk Lorentz factor of the region emitting the gamma-rays. GRB 170817A is the closest short GRB with a known distance, but is between 2 and 6 orders of magnitude less energetic than other bursts with measured redshift. A new generation of gamma-ray detectors, and subthreshold searches in existing detectors, will be essential to detect similar short bursts at greater distances. Finally, we predict a joint detection rate for the Fermi Gamma-ray Burst Monitor and the Advanced LIGO and Virgo detectors of 0.1-1.4 per year during the 2018-2019 observing run and 0.3-1.7 per year at design sensitivity
All-sky search for gravitational-wave bursts in the second joint LIGO-Virgo run
We present results from a search for gravitational-wave bursts in the data
collected by the LIGO and Virgo detectors between July 7, 2009 and October 20,
2010: data are analyzed when at least two of the three LIGO-Virgo detectors are
in coincident operation, with a total observation time of 207 days. The
analysis searches for transients of duration < 1 s over the frequency band
64-5000 Hz, without other assumptions on the signal waveform, polarization,
direction or occurrence time. All identified events are consistent with the
expected accidental background. We set frequentist upper limits on the rate of
gravitational-wave bursts by combining this search with the previous LIGO-Virgo
search on the data collected between November 2005 and October 2007. The upper
limit on the rate of strong gravitational-wave bursts at the Earth is 1.3
events per year at 90% confidence. We also present upper limits on source rate
density per year and Mpc^3 for sample populations of standard-candle sources.
As in the previous joint run, typical sensitivities of the search in terms of
the root-sum-squared strain amplitude for these waveforms lie in the range 5
10^-22 Hz^-1/2 to 1 10^-20 Hz^-1/2. The combination of the two joint runs
entails the most sensitive all-sky search for generic gravitational-wave bursts
and synthesizes the results achieved by the initial generation of
interferometric detectors.Comment: 15 pages, 7 figures: data for plots and archived public version at
https://dcc.ligo.org/cgi-bin/DocDB/ShowDocument?docid=70814&version=19, see
also the public announcement at
http://www.ligo.org/science/Publication-S6BurstAllSky
Search for High Mass Resonances Decaying to Muon Pairs in root s=1.96 TeV p(p)over-bar Collisions
We present a search for a new narrow, spin-1, high mass resonance decaying to mu(+)mu(-) + X, using a matrix-element-based likelihood and a simultaneous measurement of the resonance mass and production rate. In data with 4.6 fb(-1) of integrated luminosity collected by the CDF detector in p (p) over bar collisions at root s = 1960 GeV, the most likely signal cross section is consistent with zero at 16% confidence level. We therefore do not observe evidence for a high mass resonance and place limits on models predicting spin-1 resonances, including M > 1071 GeV/c(2) at 95% confidence level for a Z' boson with the same couplings to fermions as the Z boson
Measurement of b Hadron Lifetimes in Exclusive Decays Containing a J/Psi in p(p)over-bar Collisions at root s=1.96 TeV
We report on a measurement of b-hadron lifetimes in the fully reconstructed decay modes B+-> J/psi K+, B-0 -> J/psi K*(892)(0), B-0 -> J/psi K-s(0), and Lambda(0)(b)-> J/psi Lambda(0) using data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 4.3 fb(-1), collected by the CDF II detector at the Fermilab Tevatron. The measured lifetimes are tau(B+)=[1.639 +/- 0.009(stat)+/- 0.009(syst)]ps, tau(B-0)=[1.507 +/- 0.010(stat)+/- 0.008(syst)]ps, and tau(Lambda(0)(b))=[1.537 +/- 0.045(stat)+/- 0.014(syst)]ps. The lifetime ratios are tau(B+)/tau(B-0)=[1.088 +/- 0.009(stat)+/- 0.004(syst)] and tau(Lambda(0)(b))/tau(B-0)=[1.020 +/- 0.030(stat)+/- 0.008(syst)]. These are the most precise determinations of these quantities from a single experiment
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Prospects for Observing and Localizing Gravitational-Wave Transients with Advanced LIGO and Advanced Virgo.
We present a possible observing scenario for the Advanced LIGO and Advanced Virgo gravitational-wave detectors over the next decade, with the intention of providing information to the astronomy community to facilitate planning for multi-messenger astronomy with gravitational waves. We determine the expected sensitivity of the network to transient gravitational-wave signals, and study the capability of the network to determine the sky location of the source. We report our findings for gravitational-wave transients, with particular focus on gravitational-wave signals from the inspiral of binary neutron-star systems, which are considered the most promising for multi-messenger astronomy. The ability to localize the sources of the detected signals depends on the geographical distribution of the detectors and their relative sensitivity, and 90% credible regions can be as large as thousands of square degrees when only two sensitive detectors are operational. Determining the sky position of a significant fraction of detected signals to areas of 5 deg2 to 20 deg2 will require at least three detectors of sensitivity within a factor of ∼ 2 of each other and with a broad frequency bandwidth. Should the third LIGO detector be relocated to India as expected, a significant fraction of gravitational-wave signals will be localized to a few square degrees by gravitational-wave observations alone