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Gravitational wave detection in space promises to open a new window in astronomy to study the strong field dynamics of gravitational physics in astrophysics and cosmology. The present article is an extract of a report on a feasibility study of gravitational wave detection in space, commissioned by the National Space Science Center, Chinese Academy of Sciences almost a decade ago. The objective of the study was to explore various possible mission options to detect gravitational waves in space alternative to that of the (e)LISA mission concept and look into the requirements on the technological fronts. On the basis of relative merits and balance between science and technological feasibility, a set of representative mission options were studied and in the end a mission design was recommended as the starting point for research and development in the Chinese Academy of Sciences. The mission design was eventually adopted by the current TAIJI mission as the baseline parameters for the project. Subject to technological constraints, the baseline parameters of the TAIJI mission were designed in such a way to optimise the capability of a spaceborne gravitational wave detector to probe high redshift light seed, intermediate mass black holes and thereby shed important light on the structure formation in early Universe., Comment: Two authors added to the preprint, to appear in "Handbook of Gravitational Wave Astronomy, Springer". arXiv admin note: text overlap with arXiv:1410.7296

In the centenary year of Einstein's General Theory of Relativity, this paper reviews the current status of gravitational wave astronomy across a spectrum which stretches from attohertz to kilohertz frequencies. Sect. 1 of this paper reviews the historical development of gravitational wave astronomy from Einstein's first prediction to our current understanding the spectrum. It is shown that detection of signals in the audio frequency spectrum can be expected very soon, and that a north-south pair of next generation detectors would provide large scientific benefits. Sect. 2 reviews the theory of gravitational waves and the principles of detection using laser interferometry. The state of the art Advanced LIGO detectors are then described. These detectors have a high chance of detecting the first events in the near future. Sect. 3 reviews the KAGRA detector currently under development in Japan, which will be the first laser interferometer detector to use cryogenic test masses. Sect. 4 of this paper reviews gravitational wave detection in the nanohertz frequency band using the technique of pulsar timing. Sect. 5 reviews the status of gravitational wave detection in the attohertz frequency band, detectable in the polarisation of the cosmic microwave background, and discusses the prospects for detection of primordial waves from the big bang. The techniques described in sects. 1-5 have already placed significant limits on the strength of gravitational wave sources. Sects. 6 and 7 review ambitious plans for future space based gravitational wave detectors in the millihertz frequency band. Sect. 6 presents a roadmap for development of space based gravitational wave detectors by China while sect. 7 discusses a key enabling technology for space interferometry known as time delay interferometry., Comment: published (2015)

Part of a review paper entitled "Gravitational wave astronomy: the current status.", appeared in " Science China Physics, Mechanics & Astronomy 58.12 (2015): 1-41., Comment: Part of a review paper entitled "Gravitational wave astronomy: the current status.", appeared in " Science China Physics, Mechanics & Astronomy 58.12 (2015): 1-41

The present work reports on a feasibility study commissioned by the Chinese Academy of Sciences of China to explore various possible mission options to detect gravitational waves in space alternative to that of the eLISA/LISA mission concept. Based on the relative merits assigned to science and technological viability, a few representative mission options descoped from the ALIA mission are considered. A semi-analytic Monte Carlo simulation is carried out to understand the cosmic black hole merger histories starting from intermediate mass black holes at high redshift as well as the possible scientific merits of the mission options considered in probing the light seed black holes and their coevolution with galaxies in early Universe. The study indicates that, by choosing the armlength of the interferometer to be three million kilometers and shifting the sensitivity floor to around one-hundredth Hz, together with a very moderate improvement on the position noise budget, there are certain mission options capable of exploring light seed, intermediate mass black hole binaries at high redshift that are not readily accessible to eLISA/LISA, and yet the technological requirements seem to within reach in the next few decades for China.