Related papers: Testing General Relativity with Pulsar Timing
In Einstein's general relativity (GR), gravity is described by a massless spin-2 metric field, and the extension of GR to include a mass term for the graviton has profound implication for gravitation and cosmology. Besides the gravity…
This talk reviews the constraints imposed by binary-pulsar data on gravity theories, focusing on ``tensor-scalar'' ones which are the best motivated alternatives to general relativity. We recall that binary-pulsar tests are qualitatively…
Pulsars are spinning neutron stars typically observed as pulses emitted at radio wavelengths. These pulsations exhibit a rotational stability that rival the best atomic clocks, making pulsars one of the most important tools for resolving…
The influence of the low-frequency timing noise on the precision of measurements of the Keplerian and post-Keplerian orbital parameters in binary pulsars is studied. Fundamental limits on the accuracy of tests of alternative theories of…
The dynamics of binary pulsars can be used to test different aspects of gravitation. This is particularly important to constrain alternatives to general relativity in regimes which are not probed by other methods. In this short…
Over the last few years, a set of new results from pulsar timing has introduced much tighter constraints on violations of the strong equivalence principle (SEP), either via a direct verification of the universality of free fall for a pulsar…
Testing of the gravitation equations, proposed by one of the authors earlier, by a binary pulsar is considered. It has been shown that the formulas for the gravitation radiation of the system resulting from the equations do not contradict…
The discovery of the first pulsar in a binary star system, the Hulse--Taylor pulsar, 50 years ago opened up an entirely new field of experimental gravity. For the first time it was possible to investigate strong-field and radiative aspects…
General relativity has predicted the existence of gravitational waves (GW), which are waves of the distortions of space-time with two degrees of polarization and the propagation speed of light. Alternative theories predict more…
Pulsars are the most stable macroscopic clocks found in nature. Spinning with periods as short as a few milliseconds, their stability can supersede that of the best atomic clocks on Earth over timescales of a few years. Stable clocks are…
I review some of the major developments in the theoretical background and experimental uses of binary pulsars to explore local Lorentz invariance in the gravitational sector and its possible violation.
Radio pulsars are fascinating and extremely useful objects. Despite our on-going difficulties in understanding the details of their emission physics, they can be used as precise cosmic clocks in a wide-range of experiments -- in particular…
Neutron stars are versatile in their application to studying various important aspects of fundamental physics, in particular strong-field gravity tests and the equation of state for super-dense nuclear matter at low temperatures. However,…
The status of experimental tests of general relativity and of theoretical frameworks for analysing them are reviewed. Einstein's equivalence principle (EEP) is well supported by experiments such as the E\"otv\"os experiment, tests of…
Recent suggestions for a modification of general relativity to provide an alternative approach to gravity in connection with the dark energy (matter) problem imply a long range vector component of the gravitational field. This could lead to…
The best motivated alternatives to general relativity are scalar-tensor theories, in which the gravitational interaction is mediated by one or several scalar fields together with the usual graviton. The analysis of their various…
The initial results from timing observations of PSR J1141-6545, a relativistic pulsar white-dwarf binary system, are presented. Predictions from the timing baseline hint at the most stringent test of gravity by an asymmetric binary yet. The…
We describe the techniques used in pulsar timing observations, and show how these observations may be applied to tests of strong-field general relativity for double-neutron-star binary systems. We describe the tests of GR resulting from the…
This resource letter provides an introduction to some of the main current topics in experimental tests of general relativity as well as to some of the historical literature. It is intended to serve as a guide to the field for upper-division…
The status of experimental tests of general relativity and of theoretical frameworks for analyzing them are reviewed and updated. Einstein's equivalence principle (EEP) is well supported by experiments such as the Eotvos experiment, tests…