Systematic bias on parameterized tests of general relativity due to neglect of orbital eccentricity

Abstract

Gravitational-wave observations provide a unique opportunity to test general relativity (GR) in the strong-field and highly dynamical regime of the theory. Parametrized tests of GR are one well-known approach for quantifying violations of GR. This approach constrains deviations in the coefficients of the post-Newtonian phasing formula, which describes the gravitational-wave phase evolution of a compact binary as it inspirals. Current bounds from this test using LIGO/Virgo observations assume that binaries are circularized by the time they enter the detector frequency band. Here, we investigate the impact of residual binary eccentricity on the parametrized tests. We study the systematic biases in the parameter bounds when a phasing based on the circular orbit assumption is employed for a system that has some small residual eccentricity. We find that a systematic bias (for example, on the leading Newtonian deformation parameter) becomes comparable to the statistical errors for even moderate eccentricities of $\sim 0.04$ at $10$ Hz in LIGO/Virgo band for binary black holes, and $\sim 0.008$ for binary neutron stars. This happens at even lower values of orbital eccentricity in the frequency band of third-generation (3G) detectors like Cosmic Explorer ($\sim 0.005$ at $10$ Hz for binary black holes and $\sim 0.002$ for binary neutron stars). These results demonstrate that incorporating physical effects like eccentricity in waveform models is important for accurately extracting science results from future detectors.

13 pages, 3 figures, published in Phys. Rev. D. v2: figs updated by including BNS case and text modified accordingly, minor changes to match published version

References in corpus (15)

• Advanced LIGO
• Exploring the Sensitivity of Next Generation Gravitational Wave Detectors
• Comparison of post-Newtonian templates for compact binary inspiral signals in gravitational-wave detectors
• Gravitational waves from scattering of stellar-mass black holes in galactic nuclei
• The Evolution of Compact Binary Star Systems
• Strong-field Gravity Tests with the Double Pulsar
• LISA detections of massive black hole inspirals: parameter extraction errors due to inaccurate template waveforms
• Probing the non-linear structure of general relativity with black hole binaries
• Gravitational-wave phasing for low-eccentricity inspiralling compact binaries to 3PN order
• Evolution of Einstein-scalar-Gauss-Bonnet gravity using a modified harmonic formulation
• Compact binary systems in scalar-tensor gravity. III. Scalar waves and energy flux
• Dynamics of compact binary systems in scalar-tensor theories: II. Center-of-mass and conserved quantities to 3PN order
• Impact of eccentricity on the gravitational wave searches for binary black holes: High mass case
• Testing General Relativity with Gravitational Waves: An Overview
• LISA observations of massive black hole mergers: event rates and issues in waveform modelling

Cited by in corpus (41)

• Accurate waveforms for eccentric, aligned-spin binary black holes: The multipolar effective-one-body model SEOBNRv5EHM
• Possible Causes of False General Relativity Violations in Gravitational Wave Observations
• Tests of general relativity in the nonlinear regime: a parametrized plunge-merger-ringdown gravitational waveform model
• Accumulating errors in tests of general relativity with gravitational waves: overlapping signals and inaccurate waveforms
• Systematic bias on the inspiral-merger-ringdown consistency test due to neglect of orbital eccentricity
• Spin effects in gravitational waveforms and fluxes for binaries on eccentric orbits to the third post-Newtonian order
• Evidence for eccentricity in the population of binary black holes observed by LIGO-Virgo-KAGRA
• Blind spots and biases: the dangers of ignoring eccentricity in gravitational-wave signals from binary black holes
• Improved post-Newtonian waveform model for inspiralling precessing-eccentric compact binaries
• Resolving the eccentricity of stellar mass binary black holes with next generation ground-based gravitational wave detectors
• Eccentricity-induced systematic error on parametrized tests of general relativity: Hierarchical Bayesian inference applied to a binary black hole population
• Third post-Newtonian dynamics for eccentric orbits and aligned spins in the effective-one-body waveform model SEOBNRv5EHM
• Systematic bias from waveform modeling for binary black hole populations in next-generation gravitational wave detectors
• Systematic biases due to waveform mismodeling in parametrized post-Einsteinian tests of general relativity: The impact of neglecting spin precession and higher modes
• A study of the Inspiral-Merger-Ringdown Consistency Test with gravitational-wave signals from compact binaries in eccentric orbits
• Fortifying gravitational-wave tests of general relativity against astrophysical assumptions
• Space-based Gravitational Wave Observatories Will Be Able to Use Eccentricity to Unveil Stellar-mass Binary Black Hole Formation
• Impact of eccentricity and mean anomaly in numerical relativity mergers
• Unveiling Microlensing Biases in Testing General Relativity with Gravitational Waves
• Systematics in tests of general relativity using LISA massive black hole binaries
• A geometric template bank for the detection of spinning low-mass compact binaries with moderate orbital eccentricity
• Impact of unmodeled eccentricity on the tidal deformability measurement and implications for gravitational wave physics inference
• Evolution of a black hole cluster in full general relativity
• Parametrized tests of general relativity using eccentric compact binaries
• Eccentricity enables the earliest warning and localization of gravitational waves with ground-based detectors
• Generic EFT-motivated beyond General Relativity gravitational wave tests and their curvature dependence: from observation to interpretation
• Peaking into the abyss: Characterizing the merger of equatorial-eccentric-geodesic plunges in rotating black holes
• Gravitational Radiation from Eccentric Binary Black Hole System in Dynamical Chern-Simons Gravity
• Confronting general relativity with principal component analysis: Simulations and results from GWTC-3 events
• The curvature dependence of gravitational-wave tests of General Relativity
• Catalog variance of testing general relativity with gravitational-wave data
• Eccentricity evolution consistency test to distinguish eccentric gravitational-wave signals from eccentricity mimickers
• Modeling Gravitational Wave Modes from the Inspiral of Binaries with Arbitrary Eccentricity
• Systematic bias in LISA ringdown analysis due to waveform inaccuracy
• Identifying intermediate mass binary black hole mergers in AGN disks using LISA
• Detecting Unmodeled, Source-dependent Signals in Gravitational Waves with SCoRe
• Multi-parameter Tests of General Relativity Using Bayesian Parameter Estimation with Principal Component Analysis for LISA
• Ten years of extreme gravity tests of general theory of relativity with gravitational-wave observations
• Testing general relativity with amplitudes of subdominant gravitational-wave modes
• Probing modified gravitational-wave dispersion with bursts from eccentric black-hole binaries
• Plunge-Merger-Ringdown Tests of General Relativity with GW250114