A cosmological background of gravitational waves produced by supernovae in the early Universe

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Abstract
Simple arguments demonstrate that the rate of supernovae within a redshift horizon of z ∼`2 is at least of the order of 1010 yr−1 or 1000 s−1. This rate could be enhanced by more than an order of magnitude if the supernova rate in the early Universe is enhanced as predicted by star formation models, metallicity observations and the recent observations of an abundance of faint blue galaxies at high redshift. The gravitational waves from supernovae in the early Universe create a continuous stochastic background. The amplitude of this background depends on the efficiency of gravitational wave production in supernovae, which in turn depends on thefraction of collapses which create neutron stars and black holes, the dynamics of the collapse and the post collapse evolution of the system. It is shown that the stochastic supernova background is detectable by the cross-correlation of nearby detectors if the efficiency of gravitational wave production exceeds 10−5. The expected spectrum is in the frequency band well-suited for both laser interferometer and resonant mass detectors and cross-correlation between advanced bars and interferometers provides an appropriate means of dectection.

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