Science with the space-based interferometer eLISA. II: Gravitational
  waves from cosmological phase transitions
  We investigate the potential for the eLISA space-based interferometer to
detect the stochastic gravitational wave background produced by strong
first-order cosmological phase transitions. We discuss the resulting
contributions from bubble collisions, magnetohydrodynamic turbulence, and sound
waves to the stochastic background, and estimate the total corresponding signal
predicted in gravitational waves. The projected sensitivity of eLISA to
cosmological phase transitions is computed in a model-independent way for
various detector designs and configurations. By applying these results to
several specific models, we demonstrate that eLISA is able to probe many
well-motivated scenarios beyond the Standard Model of particle physics
predicting strong first-order cosmological phase transitions in the early
Universe.
