IAS Fundamental Physics Seminar Series - Causality and Solar System Bounds, Implications for Testing General Relativity

Abstract
In this talk, the speaker will discuss prospects for testing general relativity from GW interferometers like LIGO/ Virgo. Within pure gravity, the only possible way deviations can arise is from the existence of higher order derivative corrections, namely higher powers of the Riemann curvature tensor, in the effective action. However, the speaker shows that models that give rise to such effects, suffer from other problems. Then he goes beyond pure gravity, and discusses a class of models that are allowed by general considerations from causality in the form of a new light scalar with novel dynamics. The speaker will discuss how we might test this with studies of neutron stars.