Gravitational Waves, Sources, and Detectors

TL;DR

This paper provides a pedagogical overview of gravitational waves, their sources, and detection prospects, emphasizing current-quadrupole radiation and neutron star r-modes, valuable for graduate-level understanding.

Contribution

It offers a comprehensive, accessible treatment of gravitational wave theory and sources, including unique insights into current-quadrupole radiation and neutron star oscillations.

Findings

Detailed explanation of linearized gravitational waves

Discussion of gravitational wave sources and detection prospects

Analysis of current-quadrupole radiation and neutron star r-modes

Abstract

Notes of lectures for graduate students that were given at Lake Como in 1999, covering the theory of linearized gravitational waves, their sources, and the prospects at the time for detecting gravitational waves. The lectures remain of interest for pedagogical reasons, and in particular because they contain a treatment of current-quadrupole gravitational radiation (in connection with the r-modes of neutron stars) that is not readily available in other sources.