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At least 433 records · Page 24
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2022

Mode stability for massless scalars in five-dimensional black hole backgrounds

The mode stability of the Kerr black hole in four dimensions was demonstrated by Whiting in 1989, by separating the Teukolsky equation that describes gravitational perturbations and then transforming the radial and angular equations in such a way that the problem can be reformulated as a wave equation in an auxiliary spacetime in which the proof of stability is greatly simplified, owing to the absence of an ergoregion. As a preliminary step towards extending these ideas to higher-dimensional black holes, we study the mode stability of the massless scalar wave equation in the five-dimensional black hole solutions of Einstein gravity and supergravity. We show how the wave equation can again be mapped into one in an auxiliary spacetime in which there is no ergoregion, allowing us to give a proof of the mode stability of the solutions of the scalar wave equation.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Measuring the Kerr spin parameter of regular black holes from their shadow

In a previous paper, one of us has showed that, at least in some cases, the Kerr-nature of astrophysical black hole candidates is extremely difficult to test and current techniques, even in presence of excellent data not available today, cannot distinguish a Kerr black hole from a Bardeen one, despite the substantial difference of the two backgrounds. In this paper, we investigate if the detection of the ''shadow'' of nearby super-massive black hole candidates by near future mm/sub-mm very long baseline interferometry experiments can do the job. More specifically, we consider the measurement of the Kerr spin parameter of the Bardeen and Hayward regular black holes from their shadow, and we then compare the result with the estimate inferred from the Kα iron line and from the frequency of the innermost stable circular orbit. For non-rotating black holes, the shadow approach provides different values, and therefore the Kerr black hole hypothesis can potentially be tested. For near extremal objects, all the approaches give quite similar results, and therefore it is not possible to constrain deviations from the Kerr solution. The present work confirms that it is definitively challenging to test this kind of metrics, even with future facilities. However, the detection of a source that looks like a fast-rotating Kerr black hole can put meaningful constraints on the nature of the compact object.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2016

Strong field gravitational lensing by a charged Galileon black hole

Strong field gravitational lensings are dramatically disparate from those in the weak field by representing relativistic images due to light winds one to infinity loops around a lens before escaping. We study such a lensing caused by a charged Galileon black hole, which is expected to have possibility to evade no-hair theorem. We calculate the angular separations and time delays between different relativistic images of the charged Galileon black hole. All these observables can potentially be used to discriminate a charged Galileon black hole from others. We estimate the magnitudes of these observables for the closest supermassive black hole Sgr A*. The strong field lensing observables of the charged Galileon black hole can be close to those of a tidal Reissner-Nordström black hole or those of a Reissner-Nordström black hole. It will be helpful to distinguish these black holes if we can separate the outermost relativistic images and determine their angular separation, brightness difference and time delay, although it requires techniques beyond the current limit.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2015

Simulations of stellar collapses to black holes: Influence of hyperons

Stellar core collapse to a black hole is an event where extremely high temperatures and densities are reached. It is then expected that additional particles to nucleons and electrons appear, as hyperons. We present numerical simulations of the collapse of massive stars to black holes, with an equation of state based on the Lattimer-Swesty one, but allowing for the presence of Λ hyperons. A feature of these equations of state is that its cold and beta-equilibrium version allows for neutrons stars with almost two solar masses, marginally compatible with recent observations. Spherically symmetric simulations, under some conditions, may show the effect of a phase transition to hyperonic matter before the appearance of the black hole. We show axisymmetric simulations, too, where this phase transition would be smoothed, but where gravitational waves show clear imprint of the presence of hyperons.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
NASA NTRS1992

Quasar evolution and the growth of black holes

A 'minimalist' model of AGN evolution is analyzed that links the measured luminosity function to an elementary description of black hole accretion. The observed luminosity function of bright AGN is extrapolated and simple prescriptions for the growth and luminosity of black holes are introduced to infer quasar birth rates, mean fueling rates, and relict black hole distribution functions. It is deduced that the mean accretion rate scales as (M exp -1./5)(t exp -6.7) and that, for the most conservative model used, the number of relict black holes per decade declines only as M exp -0.4 for black hole masses between 3 x 10 exp 7 and 3 x 10 exp 9 solar masses. If all sufficiently massive galaxies pass through a quasar phase with asymptotic black hole mass a monotonic function of the galaxy mass, then it is possible to compare the space density of galaxies with estimated central masses to that of distant quasars.

Small, Todd A.↗
DOE OSTI2015

Quantum electron levels in the field of a charged black hole

Stationary solutions of the Dirac equation in the metric of the charged Reissner–Nordstrom black hole are found. In the case of an extremal black hole, the normalization integral of the wave functions is finite, and the regular stationary solution is physically self-consistent. The presence of quantum electron levels under the Cauchy horizon can have an impact on the final stage of the Hawking evaporation of the black hole, as well as on the particle scattering in the field of the black hole.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2017

Disentangling the Potential Dark Matter Origin of LIGO’s Black Holes

The nature of dark matter (DM) remains one of the biggest open questions in physics. One intriguing DM candidate, primordial black holes (PBHs), has faced renewed interest following the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory’s (LIGO) detection of gravitational waves from merging stellar mass black holes. While subsequent work has ruled out the possibility that DM could consist solely of black holes similar to those that LIGO has detected with masses above 10 M{sub ⊙}, LIGO’s connection to DM remains unknown. In this work, we consider a distribution of PBHs that accounts for all of the DM, is consistent with all of LIGO’s observations arising from PBH binaries, and resolves tension in previous surveys of microlensing events in the Milky Way halo. The PBH mass distribution that we consider offers an important prediction—LIGO may detect black holes smaller than have ever been observed with ∼1% of the black holes it detects having a mass less than the mass of our Sun and ∼10% with masses in the mass gap. Approximately one year of operating advanced LIGO at design sensitivity should be adequate to begin to see a hint of a primordial black hole mass distribution. Detecting PBH binaries below a solar mass will be readily distinguishable from other known compact binary systems, thereby providing an unambiguous observational window for advanced LIGO to pin down the nature of DM.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2013

WHEN CAN GRAVITATIONAL-WAVE OBSERVATIONS DISTINGUISH BETWEEN BLACK HOLES AND NEUTRON STARS?

Gravitational-wave observations of compact binaries have the potential to uncover the distribution of masses and spins of black holes and neutron stars in the universe. The binary components' physical parameters can be inferred from their effect on the phasing of the gravitational-wave signal, but a partial degeneracy between the components' mass ratio and their spins limits our ability to measure the individual component masses. At the typical signal amplitudes expected by the Advanced Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory (signal-to-noise ratios between 10 and 20), we show that it will in many cases be difficult to distinguish whether the components are neutron stars or black holes. We identify when the masses of the binary components could be unambiguously measured outside the range of current observations: a system with a chirp mass M {<=} 0.871 M{sub Sun} would unambiguously contain the smallest-mass neutron star observed, and a system with M {>=} 2.786 M{sub Sun} must contain a black hole. However, additional information would be needed to distinguish between a binary containing two 1.35 M{sub Sun} neutron stars and an exotic neutron-star-black-hole binary. We also identify those configurations that could be unambiguously identified as black hole binaries, and show how the observation of an electromagnetic counterpart to a neutron-star-black-hole binary could be used to constrain the black hole spin.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2012

COMPTONIZED PHOTON SPECTRA OF SUPERCRITICAL BLACK HOLE ACCRETION FLOWS WITH APPLICATION TO ULTRALUMINOUS X-RAY SOURCES

Radiation spectra of supercritical black hole accretion flows are computed using a Monte Carlo method by post-processing the results of axisymmetric radiation hydrodynamic simulations. We take into account thermal/bulk Comptonization, free-free absorption, and photon trapping. We found that a shock-heated region ({approx}10{sup 8} K) appears at the funnel wall near the black hole where the supersonic inflow is reflected by the centrifugal barrier of the potential. Both thermal and bulk Comptonization significantly harden photon spectra although most of the photons upscattered above 40 keV are swallowed by the black hole due to the photon trapping. When the accretion rate onto the black hole is M-dot Almost-Equal-To 200L{sub E}/c{sup 2}, where L{sub E} is the Eddington luminosity, the spectrum has a power-law component which extends up to {approx}10 keV by upscattering of photons in the shock-heated region. In higher mass accretion rates, the spectra roll over around 5 keV due to downscattering of the photons by cool electrons in the dense outflow surrounding the jet. Our results are consistent with the spectral features of ultraluminous X-ray sources, which typically show either a hard power-law component extending up to 10 keV or a rollover around 5 keV. We found that the spectrum of NGC 1313 X-2 is quite similar to the spectrum numerically obtained for high accretion rate (M-dot {approx} 1000L{sub E}/c{sup 2}) source observed with low viewing angle (i = 10 Degree-Sign -20 Degree-Sign ). Our numerical results also demonstrate that the face-on luminosity of supercritically accreting stellar mass black holes (10 M{sub Sun }) can significantly exceed 10{sup 40} erg s{sup -1}.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2020

Black hole perturbations and quasinormal modes in hybrid metric-Palatini gravity

The rapid advancement of gravitational wave astronomy in recent years has paved the way for the burgeoning development of black hole spectroscopy, which enhances the possibility of testing black holes by their quasinormal modes (QNMs). In this paper, the axial gravitational perturbations and the QNM frequencies of black holes in the hybrid metric-Palatini gravity (HMPG) are investigated. Additionally, the HMPG theory is characterized by a dynamical scalar degree of freedom and is able to explain the late-time accelerating expansion of the universe without introducing any ad hoc screening mechanism to preserve the dynamics at the Solar System scale. We obtain the master equation governing the axial gravitational perturbations of the HMPG black holes and calculate the QNM frequencies. Moreover, in the scrutiny of the black holes and their QNMs, we take into account the constraints on the model parameters based on the post-Newtonian analysis, and show how the QNM frequencies of the HMPG black holes would be altered in the observationally consistent range of parameter space.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2012

THE INFLUENCE OF GAS DYNAMICS ON MEASURING THE PROPERTIES OF THE BLACK HOLE IN THE CENTER OF THE MILKY WAY WITH STELLAR ORBITS AND PULSARS

Observations of stars and pulsars orbiting the black hole in the center of the Milky Way offer the potential of measuring not only the mass of the black hole but also its spin and quadrupole moment, thereby providing observational verification of the no-hair theorem. The relativistic effects that will allow us to measure these higher moments of the gravitational field, however, are very small and may be masked by drag forces that stars and pulsars experience orbiting within the hot, tenuous plasma that surrounds the black hole. The properties of this plasma at large distances from the central object have been measured using observations of the extended X-ray emission that surrounds the point source. At distances comparable to the black hole event horizon, the properties of the accretion flow have been constrained using observations of its long-wavelength emission and polarization, as well as of the size of the emitting region at 1.3 mm. I use models of the plasma density and temperature at various distances from the black hole to investigate the effect of hydrodynamic drag forces on future measurements of the higher moments of its gravitational field. I find that hydrodynamic drag does not preclude measurements of the black hole spin and quadrupole moment using high-resolution observations of stars and pulsars that orbit within a few thousand gravitational radii from its horizon.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Physical properties of the inner shocks in hot, tilted black hole accretion flows

Simulations of hot, pressure-supported, tilted black hole accretion flows, in which the angular momentum of the flow is misaligned with the black hole spin axis, can exhibit two nonaxisymmetric shock structures in the inner regions of the flow. We analyze the strength and significance of these shock structures in simulations with tilt angles of 10° and 15°. By integrating fluid trajectories in the simulations through the shocks and tracking the variations of fluid quantities along these trajectories, we show that these shocks are strong, with substantial compression ratios, in contrast to earlier claims. However, they are only moderately relativistic. We also show that the two density enhancements resembling flow streams in their shape are in fact merely post-shock compressions, as fluid trajectories cut across, rather than flow along, them. The dissipation associated with the shocks is a substantial fraction (≅ 3%-12%) of the rest mass energy advected into the hole, and therefore comparable to the dissipation expected from turbulence. The shocks should therefore make order unity changes in the observed properties of black hole accretion flows that are tilted.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2020

Bremsstrahlung in GRMHD Models of Accreting Black Holes

Here, the role of bremsstrahlung in the emission from hot accretion flows around slowly accreting supermassive black holes is not thoroughly understood. In order to appraise the importance of bremsstrahlung relative to other radiative processes, we compute spectral energy distributions (SEDs) of accretion disks around slowly accreting supermassive black holes including synchrotron radiation, inverse Compton scattering, and bremsstrahlung. We compute SEDs for (i) four axisymmetric radiative general relativistic magnetohydrodynamics (RadGRMHD) simulations of 10 8 M ⊙ black holes with accretion rates between 10 -8 $\dot{M}$ Edd and 10 -5 $\dot{M}$ Edd , (ii) four axisymmetric RadGRMHD simulations of M87* with varying dimensionless spin a$_*$ and black hole mass, and (iii) a 3D GRMHD simulation scaled for Sgr A*. At 10 -8 $\dot{M}$ Edd , most of the luminosity is synchrotron radiation, while at 10 -5 $\dot{M}$ Edd the three radiative processes have similar luminosities. In most models, bremsstrahlung dominates the SED near 512 keV. In the M87* models, bremsstrahlung dominates this part of the SED if a$_*$ = 0.5, but inverse Compton scattering dominates if a$_*$ = 0.9375. Since scattering is more variable than bremsstrahlung, this result suggests that 512 keV variability could be a diagnostic of black hole spin. In the appendix, we compare some bremsstrahlung formulæ found in the literature.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2016

Thermodynamic product formula for a Taub–NUT black hole

We derive various important thermodynamic relations of the inner and outer horizons in the background of the Taub–NUT (Newman–Unti–Tamburino) black hole in four-dimensional Lorentzian geometry. We compare these properties with the properties of the Reissner–Nordström black hole. We compute the area product, area sum, area subtraction, and area division of black hole horizons. We show that they all are not universal quantities. Based on these relations, we compute the area bound of all horizons. From the area bound, we derive an entropy bound and an irreducible mass bound for both horizons. We further study the stability of such black holes by computing the specific heat for both horizons. It is shown that due to the negative specific heat, the black hole is thermodynamically unstable. All these calculations might be helpful in understanding the nature of the black hole entropy (both interior and exterior) at the microscopic level.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2015

Magnetically charged regular black hole in a model of nonlinear electrodynamics

We obtain a magnetically charged regular black hole in general relativity. The source to the Einstein field equations is nonlinear electrodynamic field in a physically reasonable model of nonlinear electrodynamics (NED). “Physically” here means the NED model is constructed on the basis of three conditions: the Maxwell asymptotic in the weak electromagnetic field limit; the presence of vacuum birefringence phenomenon; and satisfying the weak energy condition (WEC). In addition, we analyze the thermodynamic properties of the regular black hole in two ways. According to the usual black hole thermodynamics, we calculate the heat capacity at constant charge, from which we know the smaller black hole is more stable. We also employ the horizon thermodynamics to discuss the thermodynamic quantities, especially the heat capacity at constant pressure.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2024

O Corona, where art thou? eROSITA’s view of UV-optical-IR variability-selected massive black holes in low-mass galaxies

Finding massive black holes (MBHs,M BH ≈ 10 4 –10 7 M ⊙ ) in the nuclei of low-mass galaxies $\left( {{M_*}\mathop {\mathop < \limits_ }\limits_ {{10}^{10}}{M_ \odot }} \right)$ is crucial to constrain seeding and growth of black holes over cosmic time, but it is particularly challenging due to their low accretion luminosities. Variability selection via long-term photometric ultraviolet, optical, or infrared (UVOIR) light curves has proved effective and identifies lower-Eddington ratios compared to broad and narrow optical spectral lines searches. In the inefficient accretion regime, X-ray and radio searches are effective, but they have been limited to small samples. Therefore, differences between selection techniques have remained uncertain. Here, we present the first large systematic investigation of the X-ray properties of a sample of known MBH candidates in dwarf galaxies. We extracted X-ray photometry and spectra of a sample of ~200 UVOIR variability-selected MBHs and significantly detected 17 of them in the deepest available SRG/eROSITA image, of which four are newly discovered X-ray sources and two are new secure MBHs. This implies that tens to hundreds of LSST MBHs will have SRG/eROSITA counterparts, depending on the seeding model adopted. Surprisingly, the stacked X-ray images of the many non-detected MBHs are incompatible with standard disk-corona relations, typical of active galactic nuclei, inferred from both the optical and radio fluxes. They are instead compatible with the X-ray emission predicted for normal galaxies. After careful consideration of potential biases, we identified that this X-ray weakness needs a physical origin. A possibility is that a canonical X-ray corona might be lacking in the majority of this population of UVOIR-variability selected low-mass galaxies or that unusual accretion modes and spectral energy distributions are in place for MBHs in dwarf galaxies. This result reveals the potential for severe biases in occupation fractions derived from data from only one waveband combined with SEDs and scaling relations of more massive black holes and galaxies.

Astronomy & Astrophysics↗
DOE OSTI2012

THE DISTANCE, INCLINATION, AND SPIN OF THE BLACK HOLE MICROQUASAR H1743-322

During its 2003 outburst, the black hole X-ray transient H1743-322 produced two-sided radio and X-ray jets. Applying a simple and symmetric kinematic model to the trajectories of these jets, we determine the source distance, 8.5 {+-} 0.8 kpc, and the inclination angle of the jets, 75 Degree-Sign {+-} 3 Degree-Sign . Using these values, we estimate the spin of the black hole by fitting its Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer spectra, obtained during the 2003 outburst, to a standard relativistic accretion-disk model. For its spin, we find a{sub *} = 0.2 {+-} 0.3 (68% limits), -0.3 < a{sub *} < 0.7 at 90% confidence. We strongly rule against an extreme value of spin: a{sub *} < 0.92 at 99.7% confidence. H1743-322 is the third known microquasar (after A0620-00 and XTE J1550-564) that displays large-scale ballistic jets and has a moderate value of spin. Our result, which depends on an empirical distribution of black hole masses, takes into account all known sources of measurement error.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2024

On small black holes in string theory

Abstract We discuss the worldsheet sigma-model whose target space is thed+1 dimensional Euclidean Schwarzschild black hole. We argue that in the limit where the Hawking temperature of the black hole,T, approaches the Hagedorn temperature,T H , it can be described in terms of a generalized version of the Horowitz-Polchinski effective theory. Ford≥ 6, where the Horowitz-Polchinski EFT [1, 2] does not have suitable solutions, the modified effective Lagrangian allows one to study the black hole CFT in an expansion in powers ofd− 6 andT H −T. AtT=T H , the sigma model is non-trivial for alld> 6. It exhibits an enhanced SU(2) symmetry, and is described by a non-abelian Thirring model with a radially dependent coupling. The resulting picture connects naturally to the results of [3–5], that relate Schwarzschild black holes in flat spacetime at largedto the two dimensional black hole. We also discuss an analogous open string system, in which the black hole is replaced by a system of two separated D-branes connected by a throat. In this system, the asymptotic separation of the branes plays the role of the inverse temperature. At the critical separation, the system is described by a Kondo-type model, which again exhibits an enhanced SU(2) symmetry. At larged, the brane system gives rise to the hairpin brane [6].

Physics↗