Striking a Chord with Spectral Sirens: Multiple Features in the Compact Binary Population Correlate with H0
Spectral siren measurements of the Hubble constant ( H _0 ) rely on correlations between observed detector-frame masses and luminosity distances. Features in the source-frame mass distribution can induce these correlations. It is crucial, then, to understand (i) which features in the source-frame ma...
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IOP Publishing
2025-01-01
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ad9de7 |
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| author | Utkarsh Mali Reed Essick |
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| description | Spectral siren measurements of the Hubble constant ( H _0 ) rely on correlations between observed detector-frame masses and luminosity distances. Features in the source-frame mass distribution can induce these correlations. It is crucial, then, to understand (i) which features in the source-frame mass distribution are robust against model (re)parameterization, (ii) which features carry the most information about H _0 , and (iii) whether distinct features independently correlate with cosmological parameters. We study these questions using real gravitational-wave observations from the LIGO-Virgo-KAGRA Collaborations' third observing run. Although constraints on H _0 are weak, we find that current data reveals several prominent features in the mass distribution, including peaks in the binary black hole source-frame mass distribution near ∼9 M _⊙ and ∼32 M _⊙ and a roll-off at masses above ∼46 M ⊙. For the first time using real data, we show that all of these features carry cosmological information and that the peak near ∼32 M _⊙ consistently correlates with H _0 most strongly. Introducing model-independent summary statistics, we show that these statistics independently correlate with H _0 , exactly what is required to limit systematics within future spectral siren measurements from the (expected) astrophysical evolution of the mass distribution. |
| format | Article |
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| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1538-4357 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | IOP Publishing |
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| spelling | doaj-art-4a937a1f394541c1b8b50995243dc7582025-02-05T14:17:23ZengIOP PublishingThe Astrophysical Journal1538-43572025-01-0198018510.3847/1538-4357/ad9de7Striking a Chord with Spectral Sirens: Multiple Features in the Compact Binary Population Correlate with H0Utkarsh Mali0https://orcid.org/0009-0003-1285-2788Reed Essick1https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8196-9267Canadian Institute for Theoretical Astrophysics , 60 St. George Street, Toronto, ON M5S 3H8, Canada ; utkarsh.mali@utoronto.ca; Department of Physics, University of Toronto , 60 St. George Street, Toronto, ON M5S 1A7, CanadaCanadian Institute for Theoretical Astrophysics , 60 St. George Street, Toronto, ON M5S 3H8, Canada ; utkarsh.mali@utoronto.ca; Department of Physics, University of Toronto , 60 St. George Street, Toronto, ON M5S 1A7, Canada; David A. Dunlap Department of Astronomy, University of Toronto , 50 St. George Street, Toronto, ON M5S 3H4, CanadaSpectral siren measurements of the Hubble constant ( H _0 ) rely on correlations between observed detector-frame masses and luminosity distances. Features in the source-frame mass distribution can induce these correlations. It is crucial, then, to understand (i) which features in the source-frame mass distribution are robust against model (re)parameterization, (ii) which features carry the most information about H _0 , and (iii) whether distinct features independently correlate with cosmological parameters. We study these questions using real gravitational-wave observations from the LIGO-Virgo-KAGRA Collaborations' third observing run. Although constraints on H _0 are weak, we find that current data reveals several prominent features in the mass distribution, including peaks in the binary black hole source-frame mass distribution near ∼9 M _⊙ and ∼32 M _⊙ and a roll-off at masses above ∼46 M ⊙. For the first time using real data, we show that all of these features carry cosmological information and that the peak near ∼32 M _⊙ consistently correlates with H _0 most strongly. Introducing model-independent summary statistics, we show that these statistics independently correlate with H _0 , exactly what is required to limit systematics within future spectral siren measurements from the (expected) astrophysical evolution of the mass distribution.https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ad9de7Compact objectsGravitational wave astronomyGravitational wavesBlack holesNeutron stars |
| spellingShingle | Utkarsh Mali Reed Essick Striking a Chord with Spectral Sirens: Multiple Features in the Compact Binary Population Correlate with H0 The Astrophysical Journal Compact objects Gravitational wave astronomy Gravitational waves Black holes Neutron stars |
| title | Striking a Chord with Spectral Sirens: Multiple Features in the Compact Binary Population Correlate with H0 |
| title_full | Striking a Chord with Spectral Sirens: Multiple Features in the Compact Binary Population Correlate with H0 |
| title_fullStr | Striking a Chord with Spectral Sirens: Multiple Features in the Compact Binary Population Correlate with H0 |
| title_full_unstemmed | Striking a Chord with Spectral Sirens: Multiple Features in the Compact Binary Population Correlate with H0 |
| title_short | Striking a Chord with Spectral Sirens: Multiple Features in the Compact Binary Population Correlate with H0 |
| title_sort | striking a chord with spectral sirens multiple features in the compact binary population correlate with h0 |
| topic | Compact objects Gravitational wave astronomy Gravitational waves Black holes Neutron stars |
| url | https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ad9de7 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT utkarshmali strikingachordwithspectralsirensmultiplefeaturesinthecompactbinarypopulationcorrelatewithh0 AT reedessick strikingachordwithspectralsirensmultiplefeaturesinthecompactbinarypopulationcorrelatewithh0 |