Related papers: Supermassive black hole pairs in clumpy galaxies a…
We simulate an equal-mass merger of two Milky Way-size galaxy discs with moderate gas fractions at parsec-scale resolution including a new model for radiative cooling and heating in a multi-phase medium, as well as star formation and…
Using SPH numerical simulations, we investigate the effects of gas on the inspiral and merger of a massive black hole binary. This study is motivated by the very massive nuclear gas disks observed in the central regions of merging galaxies.…
[ABRIDGED] We study supermassive black hole binary mergers driven by angular momentum loss to small-scale gas discs. Such binaries form after major galaxy mergers, but their fate is unclear since hardening through stellar scattering becomes…
We revisit the phases of the pairing and sinking of BHs in galaxy mergers and circunmunclear disks in light of the results of recent simulations with massive BHs embedded in predominantly gaseous backgrounds. After a general overview we…
We study the dynamics of massive black hole pairs in clumpy gaseous circumnuclear disks. We track the orbital decay of the light, secondary black hole $M_{\bullet2}$ orbiting around the more massive primary at the center of the disk, using…
We discuss the latest results of numerical simulations following the orbital decay of massive black hole pairs in galaxy mergers. We highlight important differences between gas-poor and gas-rich hosts, and between orbital evolution taking…
We study the orbital decay of a pair of massive black holes (BHs) with masses 5 * 10^5 and 10^7 M_sun, using hydrodynamical simulations of circumnuclear disks (CNDs) with the alternating presence of sub-grid physics such as radiative…
Using N-body/SPH simulations we study the evolution of the separation of a pair of SMBHs embedded in a star forming circumnuclear disk (CND). This type of disk is expected to be formed in the central kilo parsec of the remnant of gas-rich…
Massive stellar clumps in high redshift galaxies interact and migrate to the center to form a bulge and exponential disk in <1 Gyr. Here we consider the fate of intermediate mass black holes (BHs) that might form by massive-star coalescence…
Mergers of gas-rich galaxies are key events in the hierarchical built-up of cosmic structures, and can lead to the formation of massive black hole binaries. By means of high-resolution hydrodynamical simulations we consider the late stages…
We study the evolution of a massive black hole pair in a rotationally supported nuclear disc. The distributions of stars and gas mimic the nuclear region of a gas-rich galaxy merger remnant. Using high-resolution SPH simulations, we follow…
If massive black holes (BHs) are ubiquitous in galaxies and galaxies experience multiple mergers during their cosmic assembly, then BH binaries should be common albeit temporary features of most galactic bulges. Observationally, the paucity…
Motivated by observational searches for massive black hole (MBH) pairs at kiloparsec separations we develop a semi-analytic model to describe their orbital evolution under the influence of stellar and gaseous dynamical friction (DF). The…
We present a study on the dynamics of massive BHs in galaxy mergers, obtained from a series of high-resolution N-Body/SPH simulations. The presence of a gaseous component is essential for the rapid formation of an eccentric (Keplerian) BH…
Although supermassive black holes (SMBHs) correlate well with their host galaxies, there is an emerging view that outliers exist. Henize 2-10, NGC 4889, and NGC1277 are examples of SMBHs at least an order of magnitude more massive than…
We perform a suite of high-resolution smoothed particle hydrodynamics simulations to investigate the orbital decay and mass evolution of massive black hole (MBH) pairs down to scales of ~30 pc during minor mergers of disk galaxies. Our…
The dynamics of two massive black holes in a rotationally supported nuclear disc of 10^8 solar masses is explored using N-Body/SPH simulations. Gas and star particles are co-present in the disc. Described by a Mestel profile, the disc has a…
We compute the effect of an orbiting gas disc in promoting the coalescence of a central supermassive black hole binary. Unlike earlier studies, we consider a finite mass of gas with explicit time dependence: we do not assume that the gas…
We report on key studies on the dynamics of black holes (BHs) in gas-rich galaxy mergers that underscore the vital role played by gas dissipation in promoting BH inspiral down to the smallest scales ever probed with use of high-resolution…
The co-evolution of massive black holes (BHs) and their host galaxies is well-established within the hierarchical galaxy formation paradigm. Large-scale cosmological simulations are an ideal tool to study the repeated BH mergers, accretion…