Related papers: Binary black hole initial data for numerical gener…
Gravitational waves from the coalescence of two black holes carry the signature of the strong field dynamics of binary black holes. In this work we have used numerical relativity simulations and post-Newtonian theory to investigate this…
We revisit the construction of puncture black hole initial data in the conformal thin-sandwich decomposition of Einstein's constraint equations. It has been shown previously that this approach cannot yield quasiequilibrium wormhole data,…
We present a new phenomenological gravitational waveform model for the inspiral and coalescence of non-precessing spinning black hole binaries. Our approach is based on a frequency domain matching of post-Newtonian inspiral waveforms with…
The prime candidate of LIGO/VIRGO sources of gravitational waves is the spiral in of black holes and neutron stars in compact binaries. While the early stages of the evolution of compact binaries is computable from post-Newtonian…
Some of the theoretical challenges posed by the general relativistic description of binary systems of compact objects (neutron stars or black holes) are reviewed. We recall the various ways one can use the theory of the motion, and of the…
Fine-tuning generic but smooth spherically-symmetric initial data for general relativity to the threshold of dynamical black hole formation creates arbitrarily large curvatures, mediated by a universal self-similar solution that acts as an…
We present a new numerical method for the construction of quasiequilibrium models of black hole-neutron star binaries. We solve the constraint equations of general relativity, decomposed in the conformal thin-sandwich formalism, together…
We present a new iterative method to reduce eccentricity in black-hole-binary simulations. Given a good first estimate of low-eccentricity starting momenta, we evolve puncture initial data for ~4 orbits and construct improved initial…
Recent gravitational wave (GW) detections showing signatures of eccentricity and spin precession underscore the need to model binary black holes (BBHs) possessing these features simultaneously. Most efforts over the past fifteen years to…
Spacetime is foliated by spatial hypersurfaces in the 3+1 split of General Relativity. The initial value problem then consists of specifying initial data for all relevant fields on one such a spatial hypersurface. These fields are the…
We present a new scheme for constructing initial data for the Einstein field equations using the conformal thin-sandwich formulation that does not assume conformal flatness or approximate Killing vectors. This includes a method for…
Recent progress in numerical relativity now allows computation of the binary black hole merger, whereas post-Newtonian and perturbative techniques can be used to model the inspiral and ringdown phases. So far, most gravitational-wave…
For an arbitrary strong, spherically symmetric super-horizon curvature perturbation, we present analytical solutions of the Einstein equations in terms of asymptotic expansion over the ratio of the Hubble radius to the length-scale of the…
We present a code for numerical simulations of the collapse of regular initial data to a black hole in null coordinates. We restrict to twist-free axisymmetry with scalar field matter. Our coordinates are $(u,x,y,\varphi)$, where the…
We study the nonlinear dynamics of binary black hole systems with scalar charge by numerically evolving the full equations of motion for shift-symmetric Einstein scalar Gauss-Bonnet gravity. We consider quasi-circular binaries with…
Numerical relativity, applied to collisions of black holes, starts with initial data for black holes already in each other's strong field. The initial hypersurface data typically used for computation is based on mathematical simplifying…
Recent efforts to numerically simulate compact objects in alternative theories of gravity have largely focused on the time-evolution equations. Another critical aspect is the construction of constraint-satisfying initial data with precise…
We analytically solve the constraints in General Relativity for two black holes with arbitrary momenta and spin up to third order in these parameters. We compute the location and geometry of the apparent horizon, which depend on the spins,…
This article begins with a brief introduction to numerical relativity aimed at readers who have a background in applied mathematics but not necessarily in general relativity. I then introduce and summarise my work on the problem of treating…
The construction of initial data for black-hole binaries usually involves the choice of free parameters that define the spins of the black holes and essentially the eccentricity of the orbit. Such parameters must be chosen carefully to…