General information
Organisation
The French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA) is a key player in research, development and innovation in four main areas :
• defence and security,
• nuclear energy (fission and fusion),
• technological research for industry,
• fundamental research in the physical sciences and life sciences.
Drawing on its widely acknowledged expertise, and thanks to its 16000 technicians, engineers, researchers and staff, the CEA actively participates in collaborative projects with a large number of academic and industrial partners.
The CEA is established in ten centers spread throughout France
Reference
SL-DRF-26-0413
Direction
DRF
Thesis topic details
Category
Corpuscular physics and outer space
Thesis topics
Methods for the Rapid Detection of Gravitational Events from LISA Data
Contract
Thèse
Job description
The thesis focuses on the development of rapid analysis methods for the detection and characterization of gravitational waves, particularly in the context of the upcoming LISA (Laser Interferometer Space Antenna) space mission planned by ESA around 2035. Data analysis involves several stages, one of the first being the rapid analysis “pipeline,” whose role is to detect new events and to characterize them. The final aspect concerns the rapid estimation of the sky position of the gravitational wave source and their characteristic time, such as the coalescence time in the case of black hole mergers. These analysis tools constitute the low-latency analysis pipeline.
Beyond its value for LISA, this pipeline also plays a crucial role in the rapid follow-up of events detected by electromagnetic observations (ground or space-based observatories, from radio waves to gamma rays). While fast analysis methods have been developed for ground-based interferometers, the case of space-borne interferometers such as LISA remains an area to be explored. Thus, a tailored data processing method will have to consider the packet-based data transmission mode, requiring event detection from incomplete data. From data affected by artifacts such as glitches, these methods must enable the detection, discrimination, and analysis of various sources.
In this thesis, we propose to develop a robust and effective method for the early detection of massive black hole binaries (MBHBs). This method should accommodate the data flow expected for LISA, process potential artifacts (e.g., non-stationary noise and glitches), and allow the generation of alerts, including a detection confidence index and a first estimate of the source parameters (coalescence time, sky position, and binary mass); such a rapid initial estimate is essential for optimally initializing a more accurate and computationally expensive parameter estimation.
University / doctoral school
Sciences et Technologies de l’Information et de la Communication (STIC)
Paris-Saclay
Thesis topic location
Site
Saclay
Requester
Position start date
01/10/2026
Person to be contacted by the applicant
DAGONEAU Nicolas
nicolas.dagoneau@cea.fr
CEA
DRF/IRFU/DEDIP/LILAS
IRFU - DEDIP
Bâtiment 123
91190 Gif-sur-Yvette
0169084591
Tutor / Responsible thesis director
BOBIN Jerome
jerome.bobin@cea.fr
CEA
DRF/IRFU/DEDIP/DIR
IRFU - DEDIP
Bâtiment 141
91190 Gif-sur-Yvette
0169087591
En savoir plus