Abstract

Gravitational waves are deformations in spacetime that propagate at the speed of light outward from many astrophysical sources. Compact objects (black holes and neutron stars) merging in binary systems have produced many detectable events from ground-based interferometer gravitational wave detectors. Since the aLIGO detectors went active in 2015, many detections have been made of compact binary coalescence (CBC) systems, including a binary neutron star merger, which resulted in a kilonova and gamma-ray burst that was further measured by traditional electromagnetic telescopes. The detection of continuous gravitational waves emitted from rapidly rotating neutron stars would be a landmark detection as well, probing physics inside neutron stars. For this work, I will focus on a pipeline setup to search specifically for a continuous wave signal from the low mass X-ray binary Scorpius X-1 (Sco. X-1), which is one of the most promising potential sources of continuous gravitational waves (CWs) in the frequency band of current ground-based detectors. The CrossCorr pipeline coherently cross correlates segments of data from the ground-based detector network along with a signal model in order to make a detection and has produced the most sensitive search for Sco. X-1 with every aLIGO data release . For the CrossCorr pipeline, I helped implement a new lattice tiling module already developed in lalsuite computational needs of this CW search, and carried out the search in O3 data setting the most sensitive upper limits on Sco. X-1 CW strength to date. In preparation for O4, I also document a study characterizing the spin wandering effects on the CrossCorr pipeline using simulated signals, which has not been explicitly done before.

Library of Congress Subject Headings

Gravitational waves--Measurement; Laser interferometry; Neutron stars--Remote sensing; Scorpius (Constellation)

Publication Date

Fall 2023

Document Type

Dissertation

Student Type

Graduate

Degree Name

Astrophysical Sciences and Technology (Ph.D.)

Department, Program, or Center

Physics and Astronomy, School of

College

College of Science

Advisor

Nathan Cahill

Advisor/Committee Member

John T. Whelan

Advisor/Committee Member

Karl Wette

Campus

RIT – Main Campus

Plan Codes

ASTP-PHD

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