PREFERRED FRAME EFFECTS IN RELATIVISTIC BINARY PULSARS

Abstract

We summarize our recently presented consistent, theory-independent methodology to measure preferred-frame effects (PFEs) in binary pulsars that exhibit a high rate of periastron advance. In these systems the existence of a preferred frame for gravity leads to an observable characteristic signature in the timing data. A newly developed PFE timing model can be used to either measure or constrain the parameters related to a violation of the local Lorentz invariance of gravity in the strong internal fields of neutron stars. In particular, in the presence of PFEs we expect a set of the new timing parameters to have a unique relationship that can be measured and tested incontrovertibly. A combination of several suitable systems in a PFE an tenna array provides full sensitivity to possible violations of local Lorentz invariance in strong gravitational fields in all directions of the sky.