Through the lens of Sgr A$^*$: identifying and resolving strongly lensed Continuous Gravitational Waves beyond the Einstein radius

TL;DR

This paper explores how continuous gravitational waves from neutron stars lensed by Sgr A* can be detected and analyzed with future detectors, offering new insights into matter distribution and black hole environments.

Contribution

It provides detailed analysis and methods for identifying and measuring strongly lensed continuous gravitational waves, enhancing detection prospects and astrophysical applications.

Findings

Future detectors can distinguish lensed signals with 1-10% parameter estimation accuracy.

Observation chances increase by an order of magnitude compared to previous estimates.

Angular resolution of ~10 mas enables detailed image localization and astrophysical insights.

Abstract

Lensed gravitational waves will offer new means to probe the distribution of matter in the universe, complementary to electromagnetic signals. Lensed continuous gravitational waves provide new challenges and opportunities beyond those of transient compact binary coalescence. Here we consider continuous gravitational waves emitted by isolated neutron stars and lensed by Sgr A$^*$, the supermassive black hole at the center of our galaxy, a system observable by the next generation of gravitational wave detectors. We analyze the signatures of this system in detail, addressing parameter estimation and model selection. Future detectors can distinguish lensed continuous waves and measure their parameters with precision $\sim 1 - 10\%$ for sources within $2-4$ Einstein radii of Sgr A$^*$, depending on the source distance, thanks to the relative motion of the observer-lens-source system. The chances of observing strongly-lensed neutron stars increase by one order of magnitude relative to previous estimates, thanks to the possibility of detecting lensed systems at several Einstein radii. Multiple images can be resolved with an angular accuracy $\sim 10$mas, comparable to the best optical telescopes. Image localization probes deviations from axial symmetry and the existence of companions to Sgr A$^*$ in regions complementary to stellar orbits and black hole imaging. Our methods and many of our results extend to other lenses (e.g. galactic substructure) and sources (e.g. long-lived inspiralling binaries), rendering lensed continuous gravitational waves into versatile probes of astrophysics and fundamental physics.