BN1 - Compact Binaries and Strong-Field Tests of Gravity |
|
Speaker |
Antoniadis, John |
|
Coauthors |
|
| Talk Title |
Pulsar-White Dwarf Systems as Gravity Labs |
|
Abstract |
An outstanding question in modern Physics is whether general relativity is a complete description of gravity among bodies at macroscopic scales. Currently, the best experiments supporting this hypothesis are based on high-precision timing of radio pulsars. I will review recent advances in the field, focusing on compact binary millisecond pulsars with white-dwarf companions. These systems, if modelled properly, provide an unparalleled test-ground for physically motivated alternatives to GR that deviate significantly in the strong-field regime. Recent improvements in observing techniques and advances in our understanding of WD interiors have allowed for a series of precise mass measurements is such systems. These masses, combined with high-precision radio timing of the pulsars, result to stringent constraints on the radiative properties of gravity, qualitatively very different from what was available in the past. |
|
Talk view |
|
|
|
|