Measuring the delay time distribution of binary neutron stars. II. Using the redshift distribution from third-generation gravitational wave detectors network

Abstract

We investigate the ability of current and third-generation gravitational wave (GW) detectors to determine the delay time distribution (DTD) of binary neutron stars (BNS) through a direct measurement of the BNS merger rate as a function of redshift. We assume that the DTD follows a power law distribution with a slope $\Gamma$ and a minimum merger time $t_{\min }$, and also allow the overall BNS formation efficiency per unit stellar mass to vary. By convolving the DTD and mass efficiency with the cosmic star formation history, and then with the GW detector capabilities, we explore two relevant regimes. First, for the current generation of GW detectors, which are only sensitive to the local universe, but can lead to precise redshift determinations via the identification of electromagnetic counterparts and host galaxies, we show that the DTD parameters are strongly degenerate with the unknown mass efficiency and therefore cannot be determined uniquely. Second, for third-generation detectors such as Einstein Telescope (ET) and Cosmic Explorer (CE), which will detect BNS mergers at cosmological distances, but with a redshift uncertainty inherent to GW-only detections ($\delta (z)/z\approx 0.1z$), we show that the DTD and mass efficiency can be well-constrained to better than 10\% with a year of observations. This long-term approach to determining the DTD through a direct mapping of the BNS merger redshift distribution will be supplemented by more near term studies of the DTD through the properties of BNS merger host galaxies at $z\approx 0$ (Safarzadeh & Berger 2019).

arXiv comment10 pages, Accepted to ApJ Letters

References in corpus (39)

• Observation of Gravitational Waves from a Binary Black Hole Merger
• emcee: The MCMC Hammer
• Planck 2015 results. XIII. Cosmological parameters
• GW170817: Observation of Gravitational Waves from a Binary Neutron Star Inspiral
• Cosmic Star Formation History
• Multi-messenger Observations of a Binary Neutron Star Merger
• Exploring the Sensitivity of Next Generation Gravitational Wave Detectors
• Short-Duration Gamma-Ray Bursts
• Physics, Astrophysics and Cosmology with Gravitational Waves
• Double Compact Objects I: The Significance Of The Common Envelope On Merger Rates
• Scientific Objectives of Einstein Telescope
• A Decade of Short-duration Gamma-ray Burst Broad-band Afterglows: Energetics, Circumburst Densities, and Jet Opening Angles
• Double Compact Objects III: Gravitational Wave Detection Rates
• Networks of gravitational wave detectors and three figures of merit
• On the formation history of Galactic double neutron stars
• Measuring a cosmological distance-redshift relationship using only gravitational wave observations of binary neutron star coalescences
• Cosmography with the Einstein Telescope
• The Origin of r-Process Elements in the Milky Way
• Cosmology with the lights off: Standard sirens in the Einstein Telescope era
• Demographics of the Galaxies Hosting Short-duration Gamma-Ray Bursts
• Europium production: neutron star mergers versus core-collapse supernovae
• Neutron Star Mergers as sites of r-process Nucleosynthesis and Short Gamma-Ray Bursts
• Galactic r-process enrichment by neutron star mergers in cosmological simulations of a Milky Way-mass galaxy
• Prospects for doubling the range of Advanced LIGO
• The History of R-Process Enrichment in the Milky Way
• Binary inspiral, gravitational radiation, and cosmology
• The Stellar Ages and Masses of Short GRB Host Galaxies: Investigating the Progenitor Delay Time Distribution and the Role of Mass and Star Formation in the Short GRB Rate
• Distance measures in gravitational-wave astrophysics and cosmology
• Measuring the star formation rate with gravitational waves from binary black holes
• Implications of PSR J0737-3039B for the Galactic NS-NS Binary Merger Rate
• Short Gamma-Ray Bursts and Binary Mergers in Spiral and Elliptical Galaxies: Redshift Distribution and Hosts
• A new delay time distribution for merging neutron stars tested against Galactic and cosmic data
• Deducing the Lifetime of Short Gamma-Ray Burst Progenitors from Host Galaxy Demography
• Interpreting Short Gamma Ray Burst Progenitor Kicks and Time Delays Using the Host Galaxy-Dark Matter Halo Connection
• Future prospects for ground-based gravitational wave detectors $-$ The Galactic double neutron star merger rate revisited
• The New Model of Chemical Evolution of r-process Elements Based on The Hierarchical Galaxy Formation I: Ba and Eu
• r-process enrichment of ultra-faint dwarf galaxies by fast merging double neutron stars
• Characterization of binary black holes by heterogeneous gravitational-wave networks
• The US Program in Ground-Based Gravitational Wave Science: Contribution from the LIGO Laboratory

Cited by in corpus (34)

• The Missing Link in Gravitational-Wave Astronomy: Discoveries waiting in the decihertz range
• Measuring the star formation rate with gravitational waves from binary black holes
• The cosmic merger rate density evolution of compact binaries formed in young star clusters and in isolated binaries
• The Science of the Einstein Telescope
• Line-Intensity Mapping: Theory Review
• Probing multiple populations of compact binaries with third-generation gravitational-wave detectors
• Formation of GW190521 via gas accretion onto Population III stellar black hole remnants born in high-redshift minihalos
• Biases in parameter estimation from overlapping gravitational-wave signals in the third generation detector era
• Listening to the Universe with Next Generation Ground-Based Gravitational-Wave Detectors
• The time delay distribution and formation metallicity of LIGO-Virgo's binary black holes
• The Taiji-TianQin-LISA network: Precisely measuring the Hubble constant using both bright and dark sirens
• Cosmology with Standard Sirens at Cosmic Noon
• Observational Inference on the Delay Time Distribution of Short Gamma-ray Bursts
• Prospects for measuring the Hubble constant and dark energy using gravitational-wave dark sirens with neutron star tidal deformation
• Exploring the sky localization and early warning capabilities of third generation gravitational wave detectors in three-detector network configurations
• Does GW190425 require an alternative formation pathway than a fast-merging channel?
• Constraining properties of asymmetric dark matter candidates from gravitational-wave observations
• Discovery of the optical afterglow and host galaxy of short GRB181123B at $z=1.754$: Implications for Delay Time Distributions
• The binary-host connection: astrophysics of gravitational wave binaries from their host galaxy properties
• Gravitational Waves as a Probe of Globular Cluster Formation and Evolution
• A comprehensive forecast for cosmological parameter estimation using joint observations of gravitational waves and short $\gamma$-ray bursts
• Precision constraints on the neutron star equation of state with third-generation gravitational-wave observatories
• Analyzing clustering of astrophysical gravitational-wave sources: Luminosity-distance space distortions
• LIGO-Virgo-KAGRA's Oldest Black Holes: Probing star formation at cosmic noon with GWTC-3
• Observing cosmological binary mergers with next generation neutrino and gravitational wave detectors
• Constraining Delay Time Distribution of Binary Neutron Star Mergers from Host Galaxy Properties
• The lure of sirens: joint distance and velocity measurements with third generation detectors
• Testing gravity with gravitational waves $\times$ electromagnetic probes cross-correlations
• Constraining the delay time distribution of compact binary objects from the stochastic gravitational wave background searches
• Prospects for searching for sterile neutrinos with gravitational wave and $\gamma$-ray burst joint observations
• Predicting Short-duration GRB Rates in the Advanced LIGO Volume
• Prospects for joint multiband detection of intermediate-mass black holes by LGWA and the Einstein Telescope
• Impact of Massive Binary Star and Cosmic Evolution on Gravitational Wave Observations II: Double Compact Object Rates and Properties
• On the hosts of neutron star mergers in the nearby Universe