Related papers: Secular Stellar Dynamics near a Massive Black Hole
We argue that supermassive black hole growth in AGN occurs via sequences of randomly--oriented accretion discs with angular momentum limited by self--gravity. These stably co-- or counter--align with the black hole spin with almost equal…
We carry out adaptive mesh refinement (AMR) cosmological simulations of Milky-Way mass halos in order to investigate the formation of disk-like galaxies in a {\Lambda}-dominated Cold Dark Matter model. We evolve a suite of five halos to z =…
The rotation of horizontal branch stars places important constraints on angular momentum evolution in evolved stars and therefore rotational mixing on the giant branch. Prompted by new observations of rotation rates of horizontal branch…
We explore the evolution of supermassive black holes (SMBH) centered in a circumnuclear disk (CND) as a function of the mass supply from the host galaxy and considering different star formation laws, which may give rise to a self-regulation…
We study the dynamics and evolution of the Milky Way nuclear star cluster performing a high resolution direct one-million-body simulation. Focusing on the interactions between such stellar system and the central supermassive black hole, we…
A significant number of stellar-mass black-hole (BH) binaries may merge in galactic nuclei or in the surrounding gas disks. With purposed space-borne gravitational-wave observatories, we may use such a binary as a signal carrier to probe…
We investigate the role of hierarchical assembly in the angular momentum (AM) evolution of galaxies using a sample of 471 Milky Way-mass galaxies from the TNG-50 simulation. While galaxy orientation is often attributed to tidal torques and…
We study the observational constraints on the cosmic evolution of the relationships between the massive black hole (MBH) mass (M_bh) and the stellar mass (M^*_sph; or velocity dispersion \sigma) of the host galaxy/spheroid. Assuming that…
We propose a new explanation for the origin of angular momentum in galaxies and their dark halos, in which the halos obtain their spin through the cumulative acquisition of angular momentum from satellite accretion. In our model, the…
"Hard" massive black hole (MBH) binaries embedded in steep stellar cusps can shrink via three-body slingshot interactions. We show that this process will inevitably be accompanied by a burst of stellar tidal disruptions, at a rate that can…
There is overwhelming evidence for the presence of supermassive black holes (SMBHs) in the centers of most nearby galaxies. The mass estimates for these remnant black holes from the stellar kinematics of local galaxies and the quasar…
In galactic centers, stars and binaries can be injected into low-angular-momentum orbits, resulting in close encounters with the central supermassive black hole (SMBH). Previous works have shown that under different conditions, such close…
The putative ubiquity of massive black holes (MBH) at the center of galaxies, and the hierarchical progress of structure formation along the cosmic history, together necessarily imply the existence of a large population of cosmic MBH…
We have developed a novel Monte Carlo method for simulating the dynamical evolution of stellar systems in arbitrary geometry. The orbits of stars are followed in a smooth potential represented by a basis-set expansion and perturbed after…
Vector resonant relaxation (VRR) is known to be the fastest gravitational process that shapes the geometry of stellar orbits in nuclear star clusters. This leads to the realignment of the orbital planes on the corresponding VRR time scale…
Understanding the dynamics of low angular momentum accretion flow around black holes (BHs) is essential for probing extreme plasma behavior in strong gravity, where shock formation can naturally produce variability signatures. In this…
Rotation and mass loss are crucially interlinked properties of massive stars, strongly affecting their evolution and ultimate fate. Massive stars rotating near their breakup limit shed mass centrifugally, creating Be stars with…
The angular momentum of galactic discs in semi-analytic models of galaxy formation is usually updated in time as material is accreted to the disc by adopting a constant dimensionless spin parameter and little attention is paid to the…
The age of gravitational wave (GW) astronomy has begun, and black hole (BH) mergers detected by LIGO are providing novel constraints on massive star evolution. A major uncertainty in stellar theory is the angular momentum (AM) transport…
We model the dynamical evolution of primordial black holes (BHs) in dense star clusters using a simplified treatment of stellar dynamics in which the BHs are assumed to remain concentrated in an inner core, completely decoupled from the…