# Search for gravitational lensing signatures in LIGO-Virgo binary black hole events

## TL;DR

This paper searches for gravitational lensing effects in binary black hole signals from LIGO-Virgo, finding no evidence but highlighting future detection prospects as detector sensitivity improves.

## Contribution

It introduces a comprehensive search for multiple lensing signatures in gravitational wave data, expanding methods to identify lensing effects in future observations.

## Key findings

- No lensing signatures detected in current data.
- Future detector improvements may enable detection of lensed gravitational waves.
- Provides a framework for identifying lensing effects in gravitational wave signals.

## Abstract

We search for signatures of gravitational lensing in the binary black hole events detected by Advanced LIGO and Virgo during their first two observational runs. In particular, we look for three effects: 1) evidence of lensing magnification in the individual signals due to galaxy lenses, 2) evidence of multiple images due to strong lensing by galaxies, 3) evidence of wave optics effects due to point-mass lenses. We find no compelling evidence of any of these signatures in the observed gravitational wave signals. However, as the sensitivities of gravitational wave detectors improve in the future, detecting lensed events may become quite likely.