Speaker
Description
Gravitational waves (GWs) from binary black hole (BBH) mergers allow us to test General Relativity (GR) in the strong-field, high-curvature regime. In this work we present pTEOBResumS, a new parametrized, spin-precessing inspiral-merger-ringdown model for null tests of GR that also incorporates orbital eccentricity, which had thus far been neglected by existing GW-based frameworks. Building on the effective-one-body model TEOBResumS-Dalí, pTEOBResumS introduces parametrized deviations from GR both in the inspiral and the merger-ringdown regimes. The model is validated via parameter estimation (PE) of synthetic signals, including from numerical simulations of BBHs and exotic systems, demonstrating its self-consistency and ability to recognize beyond-GR effects, as well as showcasing the impact of eccentricity on tests of GR. The model is then used to re-analyze of a set of BBH events observed by the LIGO-Virgo-KAGRA collaboration, assuming either a quasi-spherical, spin-precessing or a non-precessing, eccentric hypothesis, while also searching for deviations from the GR expectation of the remnant BH's properties. We discuss the results obtained from the analyzed sample, which shows no statistically significant evidence for violations of GR, and delve into particularly interesting single events, such as GW200129, for which we infer support for orbital eccentricity.