gr-qc papers | Gist.Science

Quantum gravity represents the frontier where the very large meets the very small, attempting to unify Einstein's theory of gravity with the strange rules of quantum mechanics. This field explores the fundamental fabric of spacetime, seeking to understand how the universe behaves at its most extreme scales, from the heart of black holes to the moment of the Big Bang. Because these concepts often involve complex mathematics, they can feel distant to non-specialists, yet they hold the key to a complete picture of physical reality.

At Gist.Science, we bridge this gap by processing every new preprint in this category directly from arXiv. Our team provides both plain-language explanations and detailed technical summaries for each paper, ensuring that groundbreaking research is accessible to everyone, from curious students to seasoned researchers. Below are the latest papers in quantum gravity, offering fresh insights into the nature of our cosmos.

⚛️ general relativity

Wide parameter-space O3 search for continuous gravitational waves from unknown neutron stars in binary systems

This paper presents the first wide parameter-space search for continuous gravitational waves from unknown neutron stars in binary systems using advanced detectors, covering frequencies above 520 Hz and orbital periods under 3 days, which yielded no detections but established the most stringent constraints to date on signal amplitudes, ellipticities, and r-mode amplitudes for such sources.

P. B. Covas, M. A. Papa, R. Prix2026-05-15

⚛️ general relativity

Regularized vacuum stress tensor of a scalar field as the inflaton or dark energy

This paper demonstrates that a conformally coupled scalar field with a mass of approximately $10$ $M_{\text{pl}}$ can drive both primordial inflation and current cosmic acceleration through its regularized vacuum stress tensor, suggesting a shared quantum origin for these phenomena, whereas a minimally coupled scalar field fails to serve as either.

Xuan Ye2026-05-15

🔢 mathematics

On the catastrophe time of fluids under the action of a gravitational field

This paper investigates Burgers-type fluid dynamics under gravitational fields by deriving perturbative expressions for the catastrophe time in both Newtonian and Schwarzschild spacetimes, demonstrating that the validity of the expansion is governed by a specific dimensionless parameter rather than local gravitational acceleration alone.

D. Astesiano, G. Ortenzi, M. L. Ruggiero2026-05-15

⚛️ general relativity

Conservative and dissipative sectors in a nonlinear scalar model for the gravitational self-force problem

This paper investigates the decomposition of the second-order scalar self-force into conservative and dissipative sectors within a nonlinear scalar toy model, identifying multiple Hamiltonian-compatible definitions for the conservative component while noting that infrared divergences restrict the results to unbound scattering trajectories.

Francisco M. Blanco, Eanna E. Flanagan, Abraham I. Harte2026-05-15

⚛️ general relativity

Exploring the CMB in Anisotropic Universes

This paper unifies previous work on anisotropic cosmologies by deriving perturbations of the Friedmann equations for spatially homogeneous Bianchi models, combining them into a characteristic partial differential equation, and using it to simulate the Cosmic Microwave Background power spectrum for a Bianchi V toy model.

Robbert W. Scholtens, Marcello Seri, Holger Waalkens, Rien van de Weygaert2026-05-15

⚛️ general relativity

An Exact Single-Rotating Near-Horizon Geometry in Einstein-Gauss-Bonnet Gravity

This paper presents the first analytic example of a five-dimensional singly rotating near-horizon solution in Einstein-Gauss-Bonnet gravity where the Gauss-Bonnet term eliminates local curvature singularities to yield finite invariants, provided the rotation parameter stays below a coupling-dependent threshold, while also revealing unique challenges for standard thermodynamic descriptions.

U. Can Çelik, Kamal Hajian, Jutta Kunz2026-05-15

⚛️ general relativity

First look at continuous spin gravity: Time delay signatures

This paper develops a formalism for coupling matter to continuous spin gravity and calculates time-delay signatures in gravitational wave detectors, suggesting that current and future instruments could constrain the continuous spin scale $\rho_g$ to be below $\sim 10^{-14}$ eV for ground-based interferometers and $\sim 10^{-24}$ eV for pulsar timing arrays.

Shayarneel Kundu, Philip Schuster, Natalia Toro2026-05-14

⚛️ general relativity

A Breathing Universe is Consistent

This paper demonstrates that a toy FRW universe with $S^1 \times S^3$ topology and specific quantum field content supports consistent semi-classical Friedmann equations with temporal periodicity, leading to cyclic entropy reversals that align with Hawking's proposed link between thermodynamic and cosmological arrows of time.

Samuel Blitz2026-05-14

⚛️ general relativity

Scalar fields around black hole binaries in LIGO-Virgo-KAGRA

This paper presents a validated semi-analytic waveform model for black hole binaries in scalar environments, which is applied to LIGO-Virgo-KAGRA data to set upper limits on scalar densities and identify tentative evidence for a light scalar field around the GW190728 event.

Soumen Roy, Rodrigo Vicente, Josu C. Aurrekoetxea, Katy Clough, Pedro G. Ferreira2026-05-14

⚛️ nuclear theory

Universal Relations with Dynamical Tides

This paper establishes new quasi-universal relations between static and dynamical tidal deformabilities of neutron stars that remain robust across diverse equations of state, thereby providing a simplified framework for incorporating dynamical tidal effects into gravitational-wave modeling while demonstrating that a one-mode approximation outperforms Taylor expansions in capturing the frequency-dependent response.

Jayana A. Saes, Abhishek Hegade K. R., Nicolás Yunes2026-05-14

← Previous Next →