All order gravitational waveforms from scattering amplitudes

Abstract

Waveforms are classical observables associated with any radiative physical process. Using scattering amplitudes, these are usually computed in a weak-field regime to some finite order in the post-Newtonian or post-Minkowskian approximation. Here, we use strong field amplitudes to compute the waveform produced in scattering of massive particles on gravitational plane waves, treated as exact nonlinear solutions of the vacuum Einstein equations. Notably, the waveform contains an infinite number of post-Minkowskian contributions, as well as tail effects. We also provide, and contrast with, analogous results in electromagnetism.