Black holes and Gravity
My research currently focuses on the quasinormal modes produced during black hole binary ringdown.
When black holes form a binary, they begin an inspiral. During this process, they emit gravitational waves, which carry away energy. As energy is lost, the black holes spiral closer together. When the black holes begin to merge, they produce gravitational waves that are so loud they can be detected on Earth. As the resulting black hole settles down, it continues to emit gravitational waves, ringing like a bell after it has been struck. This process - called ringdown - is what I study.
These final echoes of a binary's existence are modelled as quasinormal modes. If we can accurately detect and measure these, we can probe the force of gravity and theoretical ideas about black holes. For example, we can test whether the observations agree with the predictions of general relativity.
