Search for Gravitational Waves from Low Mass Compact Binary Coalescence In LIGO's Sixth Science Run and Virgo's Science Runs 2 and 3

J. Abadie, LIGO - California Institute of Technology
B. P. Abbott, California State University Fullerton
R. Abbott, University of Glasgow
T. D. Abbott, Laboratoire d'Annecy-le-Vieux de Physique des Particules
M. Abernathy, Complesso Universitario di Monte sant'Angelo
T. Accadia, University of Salerno
F. Acernese, California Institute of Technology
C. Adams, Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics (Albert Einstein Institute)
R. Adhikari, Leibniz University Hannover
C. Affeldt, National Institute for Subatomic Physics
M. Agathos, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
P. Ajith, Stanford University
B. Allen, University of Florida
G. S. Allen, Louisiana State University
E. Amador Ceron, University of Birmingham
D. Amariutei, National Institute for Nuclear Physics
R. S. Amin, National Science Foundation
S. B. Anderson, Montana State University
W. G. Anderson, European Gravitational Observatory
K. Arai, Syracuse University
M. A. Arain, University of Western Australia
M. C. Araya, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
S. M. Aston, Universite Paris 7
P. Astone, Columbia University
D. Atkinson, Sezione di Pisa
P. Aufmuth, University of Pisa
C. Aulbert, University of Texas at Brownsville
B. E. Aylott, San Jose State University
S. Babak, Lomonosov Moscow State University
P. Baker, ComUE Paris-Saclay

Abstract

We report on a search for gravitational waves from coalescing compact binaries using LIGO and Virgo observations between July 7, 2009, and October 20, 2010. We searched for signals from binaries with total mass between 2 and 25M this includes binary neutron stars, binary black holes, and binaries consisting of a black hole and neutron star. The detectors were sensitive to systems up to 40 Mpc distant for binary neutron stars, and further for higher mass systems. No gravitational-wave signals were detected. We report upper limits on the rate of compact binary coalescence as a function of total mass, including the results from previous LIGO and Virgo observations. The cumulative 90% confidence rate upper limits of the binary coalescence of binary neutron star, neutron star-black hole, and binary black hole systems are 1.3×10 -4, 3.1×10 -5, and 6.4×10 -6Mpc -3yr -1, respectively. These upper limits are up to a factor 1.4 lower than previously derived limits. We also report on results from a blind injection challenge.