• Featured in Physics
  • Editors' Suggestion

Strong Constraints on Cosmological Gravity from GW170817 and GRB 170817A

T. Baker, E. Bellini, P. G. Ferreira, M. Lagos, J. Noller, and I. Sawicki
Phys. Rev. Lett. 119, 251301 – Published 18 December 2017
Physics logo See Viewpoint: Reining in Alternative Gravity

Abstract

The detection of an electromagnetic counterpart (GRB 170817A) to the gravitational-wave signal (GW170817) from the merger of two neutron stars opens a completely new arena for testing theories of gravity. We show that this measurement allows us to place stringent constraints on general scalar-tensor and vector-tensor theories, while allowing us to place an independent bound on the graviton mass in bimetric theories of gravity. These constraints severely reduce the viable range of cosmological models that have been proposed as alternatives to general relativistic cosmology.

  • Received 16 October 2017

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.119.251301

© 2017 American Physical Society

Physics Subject Headings (PhySH)

Gravitation, Cosmology & Astrophysics

Viewpoint

Key Image

Reining in Alternative Gravity

Published 18 December 2017

Theorists have tightly constrained alternative theories of gravity using the recent joint detection of gravitational waves and light from a neutron star merger.

See more in Physics

Authors & Affiliations

T. Baker1, E. Bellini1, P. G. Ferreira1, M. Lagos2, J. Noller3, and I. Sawicki4

  • 1University of Oxford, Denys Wilkinson Building, Keble Road, Oxford OX1 3RH, United Kingdom
  • 2Kavli Institue for Cosmological Physics, The University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois 60637, USA
  • 3Institute for Theoretical Studies, ETH Zurich, Clausiusstrasse 47, 8092 Zurich, Switzerland
  • 4CEICO, Fyzikální ústav Akademie věd ČR, Na Slovance 2, 182 21 Praha 8, Czech Republic

See Also

Dark Energy after GW170817 and GRB170817A

Paolo Creminelli and Filippo Vernizzi
Phys. Rev. Lett. 119, 251302 (2017)

Implications of the Neutron Star Merger GW170817 for Cosmological Scalar-Tensor Theories

Jeremy Sakstein and Bhuvnesh Jain
Phys. Rev. Lett. 119, 251303 (2017)

Dark Energy After GW170817: Dead Ends and the Road Ahead

Jose María Ezquiaga and Miguel Zumalacárregui
Phys. Rev. Lett. 119, 251304 (2017)

Article Text (Subscription Required)

Click to Expand

References (Subscription Required)

Click to Expand
Issue

Vol. 119, Iss. 25 — 22 December 2017

Reuse & Permissions
Access Options
Author publication services for translation and copyediting assistance advertisement

Authorization Required


×
×

Images

×

Sign up to receive regular email alerts from Physical Review Letters

Log In

Cancel
×

Search


Article Lookup

Paste a citation or DOI

Enter a citation
×