Prospects for probing ultralight primordial black holes using the stochastic gravitational-wave background induced by primordial curvature perturbations

Abstract

Ultralight primordial black holes (PBHs) with masses \(\lesssim 10^{15}\)g and subatomic Schwarzschild radii, produced in the early Universe, are expected to have evaporated by the current cosmic age due to Hawking radiation. Based on this assumption, a number of constraints on the abundance of ultralight PBHs have been made. However, Hawking radiation has thus far not been verified experimentally. It would, therefore, be of interest if constraints on ultralight PBHs could be placed independent of the assumption of Hawking-radiation. In this paper, we explore the possibility of probing these PBHs, within a narrow mass range, using gravitational-wave (GW) data from the two LIGO detectors. The idea is that large primordial curvature perturbations that result in the formation of PBHs, would also generate GWs through non-linear mode couplings. These induced GWs would produce a stochastic background. Specifically, we focus our attention on PBHs of mass range \(\sim 10^{13} - 10^{15}\)g for which the induced stochastic GW background peak falls in the sensitivity band of LIGO. We find that, assuming a monochromatic PBH mass distribution, the corresponding GW background would be detectable using presently available LIGO data, provided we neglect the existing constraints on the abundance of PBHs, which are based on Hawking radiation. For more realistic (broader) mass distributions, we find that this stochastic background would be detectable in LIGO's third observing run, even after considering the existing constraints on PBH abundance. A non-detection should enable us to constrain the amplitude of primordial curvature perturbations as well as the abundance of ultralight PBHs.