A search for gravitational waves associated with the August 2006 timing glitch of the Vela pulsar

TL;DR

This study conducted the first direct search for gravitational waves emitted by the Vela pulsar's 2006 glitch, setting upper limits on gravitational wave strain and energy without detecting a signal.

Contribution

It provides the first direct search for gravitational waves from a pulsar glitch and establishes upper limits on strain and energy emission associated with such events.

Findings

No gravitational wave signals were detected.

Bayesian 90% confidence upper limits on strain amplitude range from 6.3e-21 to 1.4e-20.

Energy upper limits are between 5.0e44 and 1.3e45 erg.

Abstract

The physical mechanisms responsible for pulsar timing glitches are thought to excite quasi-normal mode oscillations in their parent neutron star that couple to gravitational wave emission. In August 2006, a timing glitch was observed in the radio emission of PSR B0833-45, the Vela pulsar. At the time of the glitch, the two co-located Hanford gravitational wave detectors of the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave observatory (LIGO) were operational and taking data as part of the fifth LIGO science run (S5). We present the first direct search for the gravitational wave emission associated with oscillations of the fundamental quadrupole mode excited by a pulsar timing glitch. No gravitational wave detection candidate was found. We place Bayesian 90% confidence upper limits of 6.3e-21 to 1.4e-20 on the peak intrinsic strain amplitude of gravitational wave ring-down signals, depending on which spherical harmonic mode is excited. The corresponding range of energy upper limits is 5.0e44 to 1.3e45 erg.