Abstract Details

Name: Sourabh Nampalliwar
Affiliation: Eberhard Karls University of Tuebingen
Conference ID: ASI2021_197
Title : Black holes shining light on theories of gravity
Authors and Co-Authors : Sourabh Nampalliwar (University of Tuebingen, Germany)
Abstract Type : Poster
Abstract Category : General Relativity and Cosmology
Abstract : Einstein’s theory of gravity, known as the theory of general relativity, is the leading framework for describing gravitational phenomena at present. The theory, since its proposition in 1915, has gone through a plethora of tests and emerged as the theory most suitable for our universe. While successes abound, some features and implications of general relativity, both on the theoretical and the observational front, lead to questions on its suitability as the ultimate theory of gravity. This has led to many extensions and modifications to general relativity, and testing the predictions of these theories is the new frontier in both astronomy and theoretical physics. Historically, a majority of tests of general relativity had been performed in the so-called weak-field regime. But recently, tests in the strong-field regime have become possible and black holes are at the forefront of this effort owing to their compact size, simplicity within general relativity, and ubiquity in the universe. To perform these tests, various experimental techniques are used, leading among which are gravitational wave astronomy, x-ray spectroscopy, and black hole imaging. I make computational models to perform tests of gravity using these techniques, and examine the validity of alternative theories with observed and simulated data. In this talk, I will present the latest results on theory-independent constraints on deviations from black holes of general relativity obtained with the current instruments, like LIGO, NuSTAR, and EHT, and give an outlook on the improvement expected with future instruments, like LISA, eXTP, and Athena.