[Paper Review] On the LIGO-VIRGO search of coalescing-binary signals

A. Loinger, Tiziana Marsico|arXiv (Cornell University)|May 13, 2012

Pulsars and Gravitational Waves Research18 references3 citations

TL;DR

This paper challenges the existence of gravitational waves from coalescing binaries by arguing that the post-Newtonian approximation and numerical relativity models used in LIGO-Virgo searches are frame-dependent and mathematically inconsistent with physical wave propagation. It contends that the absence of detected signals is not due to sensitivity limits but because gravitational waves do not physically exist, as energy-momentum balance in Einstein's equations precludes net energy transfer, rendering GWs purely mathematical artifacts of coordinate choice.

ABSTRACT

No signal of the arrive of gravitational waves has been recorded by LIGO-VIRGO laser-interferometric detectors during recent science runs. We give a theoretical explanation of this fact.

Motivation & Objective

• To explain the absence of detected gravitational wave signals in LIGO-Virgo S6 and VSR2 runs not as a sensitivity issue but as a fundamental theoretical failure of GW existence.
• To critique the post-Newtonian approximation and template-based search methods used in LIGO-Virgo as frame-dependent and physically inconsistent.
• To argue that the energy-momentum pseudotensor and gravitational field equations imply no net energy transfer, thus excluding physical gravitational radiation.
• To re-evaluate the interpretation of binary pulsar orbital decay, suggesting it results from accretion rather than gravitational wave emission.
• To advocate for Kundt’s alternative model of gamma-ray bursts via accretion onto magnetars, rejecting standard GW-driven coalescence mechanisms.

Proposed method

• Applies the post-Newtonian approximation in harmonic coordinates, using the field equations for $ h^{ ueta} $ with source term $ \tau^{\mu\nu} $, including the pseudotensor $ A^{\mu\nu} $ as a gravitational energy-momentum representation.
• Analyzes the Einstein field equations in the form $ R_{\mu\nu} - \frac{1}{2}g_{\mu\nu}R = \kappa T_{\mu\nu} $, emphasizing that both sides have zero covariant divergence, implying no energy transfer.
• Uses the Einstein-Infeld-Hoffmann (EIH) perturbative method to show that radiation terms can be removed via coordinate transformations, restoring Newton-like equations of motion.
• Applies Levi-Civita’s theorem that when $ T_{\mu\nu} = 0 $, the gravitational tensor $ \left[R_{\mu\nu} - \frac{1}{2}g_{\mu\nu}R\right]/\kappa $ also vanishes, precluding physical waves.
• Argues that undulatory metric solutions to $ R_{\mu\nu} = 0 $ are frame-dependent and lack physical reality because their true energy-momentum is zero.
• Reinterprets LIGO-Virgo’s non-detection as confirmation of the theoretical impossibility of physical gravitational waves, not experimental failure.

Experimental results

Research questions

• RQ1 Why have LIGO-Virgo detectors not detected gravitational waves from coalescing binaries despite extensive searches?
• RQ2 Can the post-Newtonian approximation and template-based search methods in LIGO-Virgo be physically justified if gravitational waves are frame-dependent?
• RQ3 Does the energy-momentum balance in Einstein’s field equations preclude the existence of physical gravitational radiation?
• RQ4 Is the observed orbital decay in binary pulsars like PSR B1913+16 truly due to gravitational wave emission, or could it be explained by accretion processes?
• RQ5 Can Kundt’s model of gamma-ray bursts via accretion onto magnetars provide a more consistent explanation than the standard GW-driven coalescence model?

Key findings

• The absence of gravitational wave detections in LIGO-Virgo is not due to insufficient sensitivity but because gravitational waves do not physically exist, as confirmed by the energy-momentum balance in Einstein’s equations.
• The pseudotensor $ A^{\mu\nu} $, often interpreted as gravitational energy-momentum, vanishes in the absence of matter, implying no net energy flow and thus no physical waves.
• Coordinate transformations can eliminate all radiation terms in the EIH expansion, reducing the equations of motion to Newtonian form, proving that gravitational radiation is a coordinate artifact.
• Solutions to $ R_{\mu\nu} = 0 $ with $ R_{jklm} \neq 0 $ are frame-dependent and lack physical reality because their true energy-momentum tensor is zero.
• The Einstein field equations enforce a perfect balance between matter and gravitational energy tensors, preventing any net energy transfer and thus excluding physical gravitational radiation.
• The paper concludes that future historians will likely view the belief in gravitational waves, black holes, and the luminiferous ether as similarly misguided, due to the same foundational flaw in interpreting mathematical solutions as physical phenomena.