title: Gravitational wave bursts from cosmic strings
abstract: Cusps of cosmic strings emit strong beams of high-frequency gravitational waves (GW). As a consequence of these beams, the stochastic ensemble of gravitational waves generated by a cosmological network of oscillating loops is strongly non-Gaussian, and includes occasional sharp bursts that stand above the rms GW background. These bursts might be detectable by the planned GW detectors LIGO/VIRGO and LISA for string tensions as small as G&mgr; approximately 10(-13). The GW bursts discussed here might be accompanied by gamma ray bursts.
authors.affiliation: Institut des Hautes Etudes Scientifiques, F-91440 Bures-sur-Yvette, France.
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Damour
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Vilenkin