CAREER: Numerical Exploration of Dynamical, Strong-field Gravity

Princeton University, Princeton NJ

Investigators

Abstract

This award will support a research program at Princeton University, which is focused on understanding the strong-field regime of Einstein's theory of general relativity. Projects that will be pursued include modeling sources of gravitational waves in the universe (in particular collisions of compact objects such as black holes and neutron stars), high-speed black hole collisions, gravitational collapse, the interior structure of black holes, and the nature of gravity in a universe with extra dimensions. An integral part of the research program will also be to provide a vehicle to efficiently educate students in the methodology and process of performing fundamental scientific research via computer simulation. This will be achieved through development of a series of self-contained computational physics projects with interactive web-based interfaces; undergraduate or beginning graduate students will be able to work through the projects to write and use fully functional simulation codes of simplified model problems, while high-school level students will be able to use the web interface to explore working versions of the simulations. The research could have broader impact in several areas. First, knowledge of the structure of the gravitational waves radiated in compact object collisions will form an integral part of identifying and understanding such events, should they occur in the universe and be seen by a new generation of gravitational wave observatories. Second, studies of solutions of the equations of general relativity in the dynamical strong field regime should provide much insight into the nature of this enigmatic theory in extreme conditions. Furthermore, if the universe happens to contain extra dimensions, black holes might be produced in high energy particle accelerators or in cosmic ray collisions with the earth's atmosphere, and knowledge of general relativity in extreme conditions could help in identifyng and understanding such events. Finally, the importance of computer simulation in fundamental and applied scientific research will continue to grow in coming years, and the educational tools that this research program will produce should be of significant benefit in training the next generation of scientists and engineers.