Related papers: A Large Systematic Search for Recoiling and Close …

Using the quasars with z_em < 0.9 from the Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey, we measure the spectral characteristics, including continuum and emission lines, around the Hbeta and Halpha spectral regions, which are lacking in Quasar…

Rapid binary population synthesis codes are often used to investigate the evolution of compact-object binaries. They typically rely on analytical fits of single-star evolutionary tracks and parameterized models for interactive phases of…

We present the results of integral field spectroscopy of the gravitational wave (GW) recoiling black hole candidate 3C 186. The goal of the observations is to study the kinematics of the [OIII]5007 narrow emission line region (NLR) of the…

Here we discuss the possibility of super-massive binary black hole (SMBBH) detection, using the shifts of the broad lines emitted from a binary system. We perform a number of simulations of shapes and shifts of $H_{\beta}$ lines emitted…

Quasar outflows have been posited as a mechanism to couple super-massive black holes to evolution in their host galaxies. We use multi-epoch spectra from the Hubble Space Telescope and ground-based observatories to study the outflows in…

[Abridged] We compare broad emission line profiles and estimate line ratios for all major emission lines between Ly-alpha and H-beta in a sample of six quasars. The sources were chosen with two criteria in mind: the existence of high…

Much progress has been made in measuring black hole (BH) masses in (non-active) galactic nuclei using the tight correlation between stellar velocity dispersions (sigma) in galaxies and the mass of their central BH. The use of this…

The coalescences of massive black hole binaries are one of the main targets of space-based gravitational wave observatories. Such gravitational wave sources are expected to be accompanied by electromagnetic emissions. Low latency detection…

Given the stellar density near the galactic center, close encounters between compact object binaries and the supermassive black hole are a plausible occurrence. We present results from a numerical study of close to 13 million such…

A sample of 102 local (0.02 < z < 0.1) Seyfert galaxies with black hole masses MBH > 10^7 M_sun was selected from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) and observed using the Keck 10-m telescope to study the scaling relations between MBH and…

Supermassive binary black holes (BBHs) on sub-parsec scales are prime targets for gravitational wave experiments. They also provide insights on close binary evolution and hierarchical structure formation. Sub-parsec BBHs cannot be spatially…

We present a sample of 28 objects at z<0.3 from Data Release 16 of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS DR16) with large velocity offset (> 200 km/s) of narrow H$\beta$ and H$\alpha$ emission lines relative to absorption lines. Diagnostic…

Studies of rest-frame optical emission in quasars at $z>6$ have historically been limited by the wavelengths accessible by ground-based telescopes. The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) now offers the opportunity to probe this emission deep…

We review past work using broad emission lines as virial estimators of black hole masses in quasars. Basically one requires estimates of the emitting region radius and virial velocity dispersion to obtain black hole masses. The three major…

We present the first results from long-term high-cadence spectroscopic monitoring of 15 PG quasars with relatively strong Fe II emission as a part of a broader reverberation mapping campaign performed with the Calar Alto Observatory 2.2m…

We report periodic oscillations in the 15-year long optical light curve of the gravitationally lensed quasar QJ0158-4325. The signal is enhanced during a high magnification microlensing event undergone by the fainter lensed image of the…

Coalescing supermassive black hole binaries (SMBHBs) are the primary source candidates for low frequency gravitational wave (GW) detections, which could bring us deep insights into galaxy evolutions over cosmic time and violent processes of…

We present new near-infrared (IR) observations of the H$\beta\ \lambda4861$ and MgII $\lambda2798$ lines for 32 luminous quasars with $3.2<z<3.9$ using the Palomar Hale 200 inch telescope and the Large Binocular Telescope. We find that the…

All the physical processes involved in the formation, merging, and accretion history of massive black holes along the hierarchical build--up of cosmic structures are likely to leave an imprint on the gravitational waves detectable by future…

We present a systematic search for periodically varying quasars and supermassive black hole binary (SMBHB) candidates in the Pan-STARRS1 (PS1) Medium Deep Survey's MD09 field. From a color-selected sample of 670 quasars extracted from a…