Detecting compact binary coalescences with seedless clustering

Abstract

Compact binary coalescences are a promising source of gravitational waves for second-generation interferometric gravitational-wave detectors. Although matched filtering is the optimal search method for well-modeled systems, alternative detection strategies can be used to guard against theoretical errors (e.g., involving new physics and/or assumptions about spin or eccentricity) while providing a measure of redundancy. In a previous paper, we showed how “seedless clustering” can be used to detect long-lived gravitational-wave transients in both targeted and all-sky searches. In this paper, we apply seedless clustering to the problem of low-mass (M_total≤10M_⊙) compact binary coalescences for both spinning and eccentric systems. We show that seedless clustering provides a robust and computationally efficient method for detecting low-mass compact binaries.