Non-Gaussianity Beyond the Scalar Sector: A Search for Tensor and Mixed Tensor-Scalar Bispectra with Planck Data

Abstract

Primordial gravitational waves could be non-Gaussian, just like primordial scalar perturbations. Although the tensor two-point function has thus-far remained elusive, the three-point function could, in principle, be large enough to be detected in Cosmic Microwave Background temperature and polarization anisotropies. We perform a detailed analysis of tensor and mixed tensor-scalar non-Gaussianity through the Planck PR4 bispectrum, placing constraints on eleven primordial templates, spanning various phenomenological and physical regimes including modifications to gravity, additional fields in inflation, and primordial magnetic fields. All analysis is performed using modern quasi-optimal binned estimators, and yields no evidence for tensor non-Gaussianity, with a maximum detection significance of $1.8\sigma$. Our constraints are derived primarily from large-scales (except for tensor-scalar-scalar models), and benefit greatly from the inclusion of $B$-modes. Although we find some loss of information from binning, mask effects and residual foreground contamination, our $f_{\rm NL}$ bounds improve over those of previous analyses by $40-600\%$, with six of the eleven models being analyzed for the first time. Unlike for scalar non-Gaussianity, future low-noise experiments such as LiteBIRD, the Simons Observatory and CMB-S4, will yield considerable improvement in tensor non-Gaussianity constraints.