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Cosmic Shimmering: the Gravitational Wave Signal of Time-Resolved Cosmic Shear Observations
Cosmology and Nongalactic Astrophysics · Submitted 21 Oct 2024
abstract compiled · 2026-09-23 · no language-model review
The authors' main claim Our results highlight the sensitivity of these distortions to the lowest frequencies of the gravitational wave spectrum and demonstrate how they produce distinct angular correlation signatures, including null and polarisation-sensitive correlations.
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The abstract, sentence by sentence
We introduce a novel approach for detecting gravitational waves through their influence on the shape of resolved astronomical objects. This method, complementary to pulsar timing arrays and astrometric techniques, explores the time-dependent distortions caused by gravitational waves on the shapes of celestial bodies, such as galaxies or any resolved extended object. By developing a formalism based on that adopted in the analysis of weak lensing effects, we derive the response functions for gravitational wave-induced distortions and compute their angular correlation functions. Our results highlight the sensitivity of these distortions to the lowest frequencies of the gravitational wave spectrum and demonstrate how they produce distinct angular correlation signatures, including null and polarisation-sensitive correlations. These findings pave the way for future high-resolution surveys to exploit this novel observable, potentially offering new insights into the stochastic gravitational wave background and cosmological models.
background contribution method result interpretation main claim
| # | sentence | role | the authors' own work | states the main conclusion | strength |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| s0 | We introduce a novel approach for detecting gravitational waves through their influence on the shape of resolved astronomical objects. | contribution 1.00 | 0.92 | 0.17 | asserted 0.99 |
| s1 | This method, complementary to pulsar timing arrays and astrometric techniques, explores the time-dependent distortions caused by gravitational waves on the shapes of celestial bodies, such as galaxies or any resolved extended object. | contribution 0.53 | 0.44 | 0.06 | asserted 0.99 |
| s2 | By developing a formalism based on that adopted in the analysis of weak lensing effects, we derive the response functions for gravitational wave-induced distortions and compute their angular correlation functions. | method 0.98 | 0.95 | 0.06 | asserted 1.00 |
| s3 | Our results highlight the sensitivity of these distortions to the lowest frequencies of the gravitational wave spectrum and demonstrate how they produce distinct angular correlation signatures, including null and polarisation-sensitive correlations. | result 0.94 | 0.93 | 0.53 | asserted 1.00 |
| s4 | These findings pave the way for future high-resolution surveys to exploit this novel observable, potentially offering new insights into the stochastic gravitational wave background and cosmological models. | future work 0.91 | 0.23 | 0.29 | hedged possibility 0.92 |
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The paper
Original abstract
We introduce a novel approach for detecting gravitational waves through their influence on the shape of resolved astronomical objects. This method, complementary to pulsar timing arrays and astrometric techniques, explores the time-dependent distortions caused by gravitational waves on the shapes of celestial bodies, such as galaxies or any resolved extended object. By developing a formalism based on that adopted in the analysis of weak lensing effects, we derive the response functions for gravitational wave-induced distortions and compute their angular correlation functions. Our results highlight the sensitivity of these distortions to the lowest frequencies of the gravitational wave spectrum and demonstrate how they produce distinct angular correlation signatures, including null and polarisation-sensitive correlations. These findings pave the way for future high-resolution surveys to exploit this novel observable, potentially offering new insights into the stochastic gravitational wave background and cosmological models.
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References
How the literature uses it
2 arXiv papers cite this in 15 sentences
Papers citing it · 8 sentences without a confident label
Contests it 1 paper
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We then use the same convention introduced in Appendix [ref] to write the left-circular polarization tensor in terms of the orthogonal basis vectors, $v^L(q̂)≡ê_θ(q̂) + i ê_ϕ(q̂)$, as [equation] After some algebra, we find that the left-circular distortion tensor can be expressed as [equation] Next, we choose the local basis vectors for the tangential projection as[We note that there is a typo in Eq. (17) of Ref. [ref] , where the definitions of $ê_θ$ is orthogonal to $q̂$ instead of $n̂$.] [equation] such that $ê_θ×ê_ϕ=n̂$.
Sensitivity of Weak Lensing Surveys to Gravitational Waves from Inspiraling Supermassive Black Hole Binaries · Derivation of the Distortion Tensor · contest 0.86
Builds on it 1 paper
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We develop a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) framework that incorporates realistic survey parameters, such as depth, angular resolution, and cadence, and extends the noise treatment in Ref. [ref] by explicitly relating galaxy number density and size to survey depth.
Sensitivity of Weak Lensing Surveys to Gravitational Waves from Inspiraling Supermassive Black Hole Binaries · Introduction · 0.99
Uses its method or tool 1 paper
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In this appendix, we closely follow the derivation in Ref. [ref] to derive the expression for the response functions $F_X^p(q̂,n̂)$ in Eq. [ref].
Sensitivity of Weak Lensing Surveys to Gravitational Waves from Inspiraling Supermassive Black Hole Binaries · Derivation of the Distortion Tensor · 0.98
Uses its data or values 1 paper
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Here we consider the same reference values as in Ref. [ref] , $h_ref=3×10^-15$ at $f_ref=3×10^-8$ Hz and $γ=-2/3$.
Sensitivity of Weak Lensing Surveys to Gravitational Waves from Inspiraling Supermassive Black Hole Binaries · SGWB sensitivity · 0.96
Cites it as background 1 paper
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Additional probes include astrometric searches [ref] , photometric searches [ref] , asteroids ($μ$Hz) [ref] , pulsar spin orbit (picoHz) [ref] , cosmic microwave background (CMB) polarization measurements [ref] , and large-scale structure observations [ref] .
Detecting Parity-Violating Gravitational Wave Backgrounds with Pulsar Polarization Arrays · Introduction · 0.99
What it cites · 35 sentences without a confident label
Uses the method or tool of 5 papers
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For the case of an unpolarised SGWB, these can be obtained by integrating the conjugate product of the response functions over all GW directions [ref] [equation] where $XY$ are combinations of distortion variables, and taking the real part is equivalent to considering an unpolarised background.
Pulsar Timing Array Harmonic Analysis and Source Angular Correlations · Calculation of the distortion response correlations · 0.92
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To calculate the distortion [ref] we consider the astrometric deflection of a line of sight along direction $n̂$ resulting from a gravitational wave $h_ij(q̂)$ with propagation momentum aligned as $k̂=-q̂$ [ref]
Astrometric Effects of a Stochastic Gravitational Wave Background · Gravitational wave distortions · 0.88
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The response for a single GW aligned with the general directions $q̂$ is [equation] and under the redefinition $n̂ →R^-1·n̂$ [equation] where the $D^ℓ_mm'$ are the Wigner-D rotation operators and $_sY_ℓm(q̂)$ are the spin-$s$ spherical harmonics (see e.g. [ref] ) and [equation] and the $A_ℓ^κ$ is defined in [ref].
An All-Sky Analysis of Polarization in the Microwave Background · Calculation of the distortion response functions · 0.80
Uses data or values from 2 papers
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As reference values we adopt $h_ref=3×10^-15$ at $f_ref=3×10^-8$Hz and $γ=-2/3$ [ref] .
The NANOGrav 15-year Data Set: Constraints on Supermassive Black Hole Binaries from the Gravitational Wave Background · Observational prospects · 0.83
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As reference values we adopt $h_ref=3×10^-15$ at $f_ref=3×10^-8$Hz and $γ=-2/3$ [ref] .
The second data release from the European Pulsar Timing Array: IV. Implications for massive black holes, dark matter and the early Universe · Observational prospects · 0.83
Cites as background 7 papers
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In cosmic shear studies, the shapes of numerous resolved galaxies are analysed to identify correlated distortions induced by weak lensing [ref] , which arises from scalar curvature and potential perturbations along the line of sight between the galaxy and the observer (see [ref] for a review).
Weak Lensing and Cosmology · Introduction · 0.99
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The correlated effect of weak lensing was first detected in the early 2000s [ref] , and ongoing observational campaigns, such as the Euclid satellite mission [ref] and the LSST survey with the Vera C.
Euclid preparation: VII. Forecast validation for Euclid cosmological probes · Introduction · 0.83
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The correlated effect of weak lensing was first detected in the early 2000s [ref] , and ongoing observational campaigns, such as the Euclid satellite mission [ref] and the LSST survey with the Vera C.
Detection of weak gravitational lensing distortions of distant galaxies by cosmic dark matter at large scales · Introduction · 0.83
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