Work

Line-of-Sight Acceleration-driven waveform corrections for unequal-mass compact binary coalescences

Year: 2026

Type: preprint

Abstract: A constant line-of-sight acceleration (LOSA) of the centre-of-mass of a quasi-circular compact binary coalescence (CBC) leads to modulations in the gravitational-wave (GW) waveform at $-4$ post-Newtonian (PN) order. In our previous work, we calculated the phase and amplitude corrections only for the $(\ell,m) = (2,2)$ mode. The gravitational wave event GW190814 has recently attracted considerable attention because it has been suggested to provide evidence for a nonzero LOSA. However, several LOSA analyses of GW190814 employ higher-order-mode waveform models, such as \texttt{IMRPhenomXPHM}, while incorporating LOSA corrections only for the dominant (2,2) mode. This approximation assumes that their omission has a negligible impact on parameter estimation. In this paper, we present a self-consistent implementation of LOSA in a higher-mode waveform model by deriving the corresponding phase and amplitude corrections. We show that these corrections are essential for asymmetric binaries such as GW190814 and that neglecting them biases parameter inference. We also discuss inconsistencies in the derivation and implementation of LOSA corrections in waveform models in the literature that include higher-order modes.

Source: arXiv (Cornell University)

DOI: 10.48550/arxiv.2610.08492

Authors: Ansari, Mohd Asim, Tiwari, Avinash, Bhat, Sajad A., Vijaykumar, Aditya, Kapadia, Shasvath J.

Institutions: Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of Toronto, Canadian Institute for Theoretical Astrophysics

Language: English

Topic: Pulsars and Gravitational Waves Research

Subfield: Astronomy and Astrophysics

Field: Physics and Astronomy

Domain: Physical Sciences

Open Access status: green

Funders: National Science Foundation, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Science and Engineering Research Board

Awards: The Operation and Maintenance of the Laser Interferometer Gravitational Wave Observatory (LIGO), G197133243, The Construction of the Advanced Laser Interferometer Gravitational Wave Observatory (AdvLIGO), MRI: Acquisition of a High-Capacity Data Analysis System for Gravitational-Wave Detection with Advanced LIGO, G5259780404, Data Handling and Analysis Infrastructure for Gravitational-Wave Astronomy

OpenAlex ID: W7221011687

Cites: 70

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Related to: 10