Constraining spontaneous black hole scalarization in scalar-tensor-Gauss-Bonnet theories with current gravitational-wave data

Abstract

We examine the constraining power of current gravitational-wave data on scalar-tensor-Gauss-Bonnet theories that allow for the spontaneous scalarization of black holes. In the fiducial model that we consider, a slowly rotating black hole must scalarize if its size is comparable to the new length scale $\lambda$ that the theory introduces, although rapidly rotating black holes of any mass are effectively indistinguishable from their counterparts in general relativity. With this in mind, we use the gravitational-wave event GW190814$\,\unicode{x2014}\,$whose primary black hole has a spin that is bounded to be small, and whose signal shows no evidence of a scalarized primary$\,\unicode{x2014}\,$to rule out a narrow region of the parameter space. In particular, we find that values of $\lambda \in [56,96]M_{\odot }$ are strongly disfavored with a Bayes factor of $0.1$ or less. We also include a second event, GW151226, in our analysis to illustrate what information can be extracted when the spins of both components are poorly measured.

Version accepted for publication. 8 pages + references, 4 figures. Some minor clarifications added relative to v1

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• Dynamical descalarization with a jump during black hole merger
• Stringent Pulsar Timing Bounds on Light Scalar Couplings to Matter
• Effective-action model for dynamical scalarization beyond the adiabatic approximation
• Impact of ringdown higher-order modes on black-hole mergers in dense environments: the scalar field case, detectability and parameter biases
• Distinguishing black holes with and without spontaneous scalarization in Einstein-scalar-Gauss-Bonnet theories via optical features
• The power of binary pulsars in testing Gauss-Bonnet gravity
• Axial perturbations of hairy black holes in generalised scalar-tensor theories
• Quasinormal modes of hairy black holes in shift-symmetric theories
• Breaking black-hole uniqueness at supermassive scales
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• New model of spontaneous scalarization of black holes induced by curvature and matter
• Dynamical hair growth in black hole binaries in Einstein-scalar-Gauss-Bonnet gravity
• Constraining Scalar Charge in Neutron Stars through Gravitational Wave Signals from NSBH Mergers