Post-Newtonian gravitational radiation and equations of motion via direct integration of the relaxed Einstein equations. V. Evidence for the strong equivalence principle to second post-Newtonian order
- McDonnell Center for the Space Sciences, Department of Physics, Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri 63130 (United States)
Using post-Newtonian equations of motion for fluid bodies valid to the second post-Newtonian order, we derive the equations of motion for binary systems with finite-sized, nonspinning but arbitrarily shaped bodies. In particular we study the contributions of the internal structure of the bodies (such as self-gravity) that would diverge if the size of the bodies were to shrink to zero. Using a set of virial relations accurate to the first post-Newtonian order that reflect the stationarity of each body, and redefining the masses to include 1PN and 2PN self-gravity terms, we demonstrate the complete cancellation of a class of potentially divergent, structure-dependent terms that scale as s{sup -1} and s{sup -5/2}, where s is the characteristic size of the bodies. This is further evidence of the strong equivalence principle, and supports the use of post-Newtonian approximations to derive equations of motion for strong-field bodies such as neutron stars and black holes. This extends earlier work done by Kopeikin.
- OSTI ID:
- 20935331
- Journal Information:
- Physical Review. D, Particles Fields, Vol. 75, Issue 12; Other Information: DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevD.75.124025; (c) 2007 The American Physical Society; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0556-2821
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Post-1-Newtonian equations of motion for systems of arbitrarily structured bodies
Parameter estimation of inspiralling compact binaries using 3.5 post-Newtonian gravitational wave phasing: The nonspinning case