Related papers: A new mechanism for massive binary black hole evol…
We compute the evolution of a quasi-spherical, slowly rotating accretion flow around a black hole, whose mass and spin evolve adequately to the mass-energy transfer through the horizon. Our model is relevant for the central engine driving a…
We assess the contribution of dynamical hardening by direct three-body scattering interactions to the rate of stellar-mass black hole binary (BHB) mergers in galactic nuclei. We derive an analytic model for the single-binary encounter rate…
Tidal torques from a binary black hole (BHBH) empty out the central regions in any circumbinary gaseous accretion disk. The balance between tidal torques and viscosity maintain the inner edge of the disk at a radius r ~ 1.5a -- 2a, where a…
Massive black hole binaries (BHBs) are expected to form as the result of galaxy mergers; they shrink via dynamical friction and stellar scatterings, until gravitational waves (GWs) bring them to the final coalescence. It has been argued…
We study an accretion flow during the gravitational-wave driven evolution of binary massive black holes. After the binary orbit decays due to an interaction with a massive circumbinary disk, the binary is decoupled from the circumbinary…
The ground-based measurement of gravitational waves (GW) from merging binary black holes (BBH) uniquely allows determination of spins of stellar-remnant black holes (BH), thereby offering insights into their formation mechanisms. The…
The vast majority of massive binary systems in the universe is evidently unsuited to produce merging binary black holes. However, several narrow evolutionary paths of isolated massive binaries towards this goal have recently been…
We simulate mergers between galaxies containing collisionally-relaxed nuclei around massive black holes (MBHs). Our galaxies contain four mass groups, representative of old stellar populations; a primary goal is to understand the…
Circumbinary accretion occurs throughout the universe, from the formation of stars and planets to the aftermath of major galactic mergers. We present an extensive investigation of circumbinary accretion disks, studying circular binaries…
There is compelling evidence that most -if not all- galaxies harbour a super-massive black hole (SMBH) at their nucleus, hence binaries of these massive objects are an inevitable product of the hierarchical evolution of structures in the…
Massive binary black holes form at the centre of galaxies that experience a merger episode. They are expected to coalesce into a larger black hole, following the emission of gravitational waves. Coalescing massive binary black holes are…
The hierarchical galaxy formation picture suggests that super massive black holes (MBHs) observed in galactic nuclei today have grown from coalescence of massive black hole binaries (MBHB) after galaxy merging. Once the components of a MBHB…
We suggest a new picture of supermassive black hole (SMBH) growth in galaxy centers. Momentum-driven feedback from an accreting hole gives significant orbital energy but little angular momentum to the surrounding gas. Once central accretion…
We investigate properties of black hole (BH) binaries formed in globular clusters via dynamical processes, using direct N-body simulations. We pay attention to effects of BH mass function on the total mass and mass ratio distributions of BH…
Stellar-mass black holes can become embedded within the gaseous disks of active galactic nuclei (AGNs). Afterwards, their interactions are mediated by their gaseous surroundings. In this work, we study the evolution of stellar-mass binary…
Binary black hole (BBH) evolution in the discs of active galactic nuclei (AGN) is a promising channel for gravitational wave (GW)-driven mergers. It is however unclear whether binaries interacting with the surrounding disc undergo orbital…
Massive black hole binaries (MBHBs) represent an unavoidable outcome of hierarchical galaxy formation, but their dynamical evolution at sub-parsec scales is poorly understood, due to a combination of uncertainties in theoretical models and…
Stellar-mass binary black holes (BBHs) embedded in active galactic nucleus (AGN) discs offer a promising dynamical channel to produce black-hole mergers that are detectable by LIGO/Virgo. Modeling the interactions between the disc gas and…
Combining a theoretical model of mass accretion onto a galactic center with a high-resolution $N$-body/SPH simulation, we investigate the formation of an intermediate massive black hole (IMBH) during the hierarchical formation of a small…
The asymmetric emission of gravitational waves produced during the coalescence of a massive black hole (MBH) binary imparts a velocity "kick" to the system that can displace the hole from the center of its host. Here we study the…