Using a post-Newtonian diagnostic tool developed by Mora and Will, we examine numerically generated quasiequilibrium initial data sets that have been used in recently successful numerical evolutions of binary black holes through plunge, merger and ringdown. We show that a small but significant orbital eccentricity is required to match post-Newtonian and quasiequilibrium calculations. If this proves to be a real eccentricity, it could affect the fine details of the subsequent numerical evolutions and the predicted gravitational waveforms.
@article{arxiv.gr-qc/0607047,
title = {Eccentricity content of binary black hole initial data},
author = {Emanuele Berti and Sai Iyer and Clifford M. Will},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:gr-qc/0607047},
year = {2009}
}
Comments
5 pages, 5 figures, clarifications and minor corrections; version submitted to Phys. Rev. D