List of likely exam questions

1. What is the GKZ cutoff? What is the cutoff energy?
   
2. What is the difference between covariant and contravariant tensors?
   
3. What is the rank of tensors?
   
4. What is a mixed tensor?
   
5. How do you define the trace of a mixed rank-2 tensor?
   
6. What is the direct product of tensors?
   
7. What is the quotient rule for tensors?
   
8. Define tidal forces and describe a tidal disruption event.
   
9. What is a Riemann manifold?
   
10. What is the difference between intrinsic and extrinsic curvature?
    
11. Define the metric tensor.
12. Define covariant and contravariant bases.
13. Explain the covariant derivative of a contravariant vector and the connection coefficients.
14. How does the covariant derivative of a covariant vector differ from that of a contravariant vector?
    
15. Derive the formula for the connection coefficients.
    
16. What is the geodesic equation?
    
17. What is the definition of the Riemann tensor?
    
18. Define the Ricci tensor and the Ricci scalar.
19. What is the geodesic deviation?
    
20. What is the principle of general covariance?
    
21. What is the principle of consistency?
    
22. What is the principle of equivalence?
    
23. What is the stress-energy tensor?
    
24. What is the transverse-traceless gauge?
    
25. How does one transform the strain tensor of a gravitational wave to a different frame of reference, given the transformation matrix?
    
26. What is the quadrupole formula?
    
27. Why there cannot be any dipole gravitational radiation?
    
28. Why can't a spherical mass distribution generate gravitational waves?
    
29. The transfer function of a simple Michelson interferometer.
30. Discuss the method to produce sidebands in the laser beam in an interferometer.
31. What is the Schnupp asymmetry?
    
32. Derive the Airy function for a Fabry-Perot resonant cavity.
    
33. Discuss the "photon lifetime" in a Fabry-Perot cavity.
34. Why are GW interferometers usually operated with overcoupled FP cavities?
    
35. What is "power recycling" in a GW interferometer?
    
36. Describe the phase of a compact binary coalescence.
37. Discuss thermal noise in a GW interferometer.
38. How is the fluctuation-dissipation theorem useful to understand interferometer noise?
    
39. Decribe the antenna patterns of a GW interferometer.
40. What is the chirp mass?
    
41. What is the mass ratio?
    
42. How is the sensitivity curve on an interferometer defined, and what are its main features?
    
43. What is a matched filter?
    
44. What is the signal-to-noise ratio?
    
45. How is the BNS range defined?
    
46. What is a kilonova?
    
47. Upper bound on the difference between speed of light and speed of gravity from GW170817.
48. What is the difference between source frame mass and detector frame mass?
49. Can the current GW interferometers detect gravitational waves from merging binary white dwarfs?
    
50. Can the current GW interferometers detect gravitational waves from merging supermassive black holes?