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Advancing space-based gravitational wave astronomy: Rapid parameter estimation via normalizing flows

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Abstract

Gravitational wave (GW) astronomy is witnessing a transformative shift from terrestrial to space-based detection, with missions like Taiji at the forefront. While the transition brings unprecedented opportunities for exploring massive black hole binaries (MBHBs), it also imposes complex challenges in data analysis, particularly in parameter estimation amidst confusion noise. Addressing this gap, we utilize scalable normalizing flow models to achieve rapid and accurate inference within the Taiji environment. Innovatively, our approach simplifies the data’s complexity, employs a transformation mapping to overcome the year-period time-dependent response function, and unveils additional multimodality in the arrival time parameter. Our method estimates MBHBs several orders of magnitude faster than conventional techniques, maintaining high accuracy even in complex backgrounds. These findings significantly enhance the efficiency of GW data analysis, paving the way for rapid detection and alerting systems and enriching our ability to explore the universe through space-based GW observation.

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Author notes

  1. These authors contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center for Gravitational Wave Experiment, National Microgravity Laboratory, Institute of Mechanics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China

    Minghui Du, Peng Xu & Ziren Luo

  2. Key Laboratory of Gravitational Wave Precision Measurement of Zhejiang Province, Hangzhou Institute for Advanced Study, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hangzhou, 310024, China

    Bo Liang, Peng Xu, Ziren Luo & Yueliang Wu

  3. Shanghai Institute of Optics and Fine Mechanics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 201800, China

    Bo Liang

  4. International Centre for Theoretical Physics Asia-Pacific, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China

    He Wang & Yueliang Wu

  5. Taiji Laboratory for Gravitational Wave Universe (Beijing/Hangzhou), University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China

    Bo Liang, He Wang, Peng Xu & Ziren Luo

  6. Lanzhou Center of Theoretical Physics, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, 730000, China

    Peng Xu

  7. Institute of Theoretical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China

    Yueliang Wu

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  1. Minghui Du
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Corresponding authors

Correspondence to He Wang or Yueliang Wu.

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Conflict of interest The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Additional information

This work was supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China (Grant Nos. 2021YFC2203004, and 2021YFC2201903). He Wang was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 12147103, and 12247187), and the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities. Minghui Du and Bo Liang collaborated extensively on the code debugging and results compilation process. Minghui Du took charge of preparing the Taiji datasets and developing the software used for training, testing, and inference. Minghui Du introduced the innovative concept of transforming reference times, enriching the methodological approach. Bo Liang conducted an independent inference study to validate the reproducibility of our model. Bo Liang contributed significantly to code debugging and model fine-tuning, ensuring the robustness of the methodology. He Wang assumed a leadership role, spearheading the overall project and coordinating the manuscript’s writing. He Wang also played a pivotal role in verifying the credibility of the model’s unbiased estimation and validating the multimodality of the posterior distribution. Peng Xu made invaluable contributions by refining the narrative structure of the manuscript and enhancing its logical progression. Peng Xu’s insightful suggestions greatly enriched the overall quality of the paper. Ziren Luo and Yueliang Wu provided foundational contributions that set the tone for the manuscript. Their valuable insights and feedback played a crucial role in shaping the writing and submission process. Yueliang Wu secured the major funding for this research endeavor and conceived the overarching research direction, providing the visionary framework within which the study unfolded. All authors actively participated in the development of ideas, as well as the writing and rigorous reviewing of this manuscript. We are thankful to Zhoujian Cao for many helpful discussions.

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Du, M., Liang, B., Wang, H. et al. Advancing space-based gravitational wave astronomy: Rapid parameter estimation via normalizing flows. Sci. China Phys. Mech. Astron. 67, 230412 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11433-023-2270-7

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