Related papers: Compact Binary Mergers and Accretion-Induced Colla…
Double compact objects (neutron stars and black holes) found in binaries with small orbital separations are known to spiral in and are expected to coalesce eventually because of the emission of gravitational waves. Such inspiral and merger…
The coalescence of close binary systems with two compact objects (neutron stars and black holes) are considered to be promising sources of gravitational waves for the currently built laser interferometers. Here, I review the current…
Gravitational-wave detections are enabling measurements of the rate of coalescences of binaries composed of two compact objects -- neutron stars and/or black holes. The coalescence rate of binaries containing neutron stars is further…
We report on a search for gravitational waves from coalescing compact binary systems in the Milky Way and the Magellanic Clouds. The analysis uses data taken by two of the three LIGO interferometers during the first LIGO science run and…
The LIGO Scientific and Virgo Collaborations have announced the first detection of gravitational waves from the coalescence of two neutron stars. The merger rate of binary neutron stars estimated from this event suggests that distant,…
The coalescence of massive black hole binaries (with masses $10^4 - 10^7 M_{\odot}$) leads to gravitational wave emission that is detectable out to high redshifts ($z \sim 20$) with the forthcoming LISA observatory. We combine the…
As the ground-based gravitational-wave telescopes LIGO, Virgo, and GEO 600 approach the era of first detections, we review the current knowledge of the coalescence rates and the mass and spin distributions of merging neutron-star and…
We present the summary of the recent investigations of double black hole binaries in context of their formation and merger rates. In particular we discuss the spectrum of black hole masses, the formation scenarios in the local Universe and…
The dynamics of coalescing compact binaries can be affected by the environment in which the systems evolve, leaving detectable signatures into the emitted gravitational signal. In this paper we investigate the ability of gravitational-wave…
With the discovery of both binary black hole mergers and a binary neutron star merger the field of Gravitational Wave Astrophysics has really begun. The current advanced LIGO and Virgo detectors are laser interferometers that will improve…
We investigate the merging rates of compact binaries in galaxies, and the related detection rate of gravitational wave (GW) events with AdvLIGO/Virgo and with the Einstein Telescope. To this purpose, we rely on three basic ingredients: (i)…
Ground-based gravitational-wave detectors like the Advanced LIGO, Advanced Virgo, and KAGRA experiments now regularly witness gravitational waves from compact binary mergers: the relativistic collisions of neutron stars and/or stellar-mass…
A new generation of ground-based interferometric detectors for gravitational waves is currently under construction or has entered the commissioning phase (LIGO, VIRGO, GEO600, TAMA). We study the most promising candidate sources for these…
We report on a search for gravitational waves from coalescing compact binaries using LIGO and Virgo observations between July 7, 2009 and October 20, 2010. We searched for signals from binaries with total mass between 2 and 25 solar masses;…
The coalescence of compact binaries containing neutron stars or black holes is one of the most promising signals for advanced ground-based laser interferometer gravitational-wave detectors, with the first direct detections expected over the…
Gravitational wave measurements will provide insight into the population of coalescing compact binaries throughout the universe. We describe and demonstrate a flexible parametric method to infer the event rate as a function of compact…
We show how LIGO is expected to detect coalescing binary black holes at $z>1$, that are lensed by the intervening galaxy population. Gravitational magnification, $\mu$, strengthens gravitational wave signals by $\sqrt{\mu}$, without…
We introduce a method based on the loudest event statistic to calculate an upper limit or interval on the astrophysical rate of binary coalescence. The calculation depends upon the sensitivity and noise background of the detectors, and a…
Short gamma-ray bursts are believed to originate from the merger of two compact objects. If this scenario is correct, these bursts will be accompanied by the emission of strong gravitational waves, detectable by current or planned GW…
I review the expected Galactic sources of gravitational waves, concentrating on the low-frequency domain and summarise the current observational and theoretical knowledge we have. A model for the Galactic population of close binaries, which…