Related papers: Comparison of Polarized Radiative Transfer Codes u…
We study low angular momentum, advective accretion flows around a Kerr black hole within the framework of general relativistic magnetohydrodynamics (GRMHD) in the steady state. By solving the full set of GRMHD equations, we aim to provide a…
Using very long baseline interferometry, the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) collaboration has resolved the shadows of two supermassive black holes. Model comparison is traditionally performed in image space, where imaging algorithms…
Electromagnetic observations have been used over the past decades to understand the nature of black holes and the material around them. Our ability to learn about the fundamental physics relies on our understanding of two key ingredients in…
The polarized images of a synchrotron emitting ring are studied in the regular Hayward and Bardeen black hole spacetimes. These regular black holes carry a magnetic field in terms of gravity coupled to nonlinear electrodynamics. Results…
Images of the linear polarization of synchrotron radiation around Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN) identify their projected magnetic field lines and provide key data for understanding the physics of accretion and outflow from supermassive black…
X-ray reflection spectroscopy is a powerful tool for testing the Kerr hypothesis and probing the strong gravity regime around accreting black holes. Most tests of General Relativity (GR) assume that the spacetime around a black hole is…
Millimeter polarimetry of Sgr A* probes the linearly polarized emission region on a scale of $\sim 10$ Schwarzschild radii ($R_S$) as well as the dense, magnetized accretion flow on scales out to the Bondi radius ($\sim 10^5 R_S$) through…
Measurements from the Event Horizon Telescope enabled the visualization of light emission around a black hole for the first time. So far, these measurements have been used to recover a 2D image under the assumption that the emission field…
We present axisymmetric numerical simulations of radiatively inefficient accretion flows onto black holes combining general relativity, magnetohydrodynamics, self-consistent electron thermodynamics, and frequency-dependent radiation…
It has long been thought that black hole accretion flows are driven by magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) turbulence, and there are now many general relativistic global simulations illustrating the dynamics of this process. However, many challenges…
The accretion flow around the Galactic Center black hole Sagittarius A* (Sgr A*) is expected to have an electron temperature that is distinct from the ion temperature, due to weak Coulomb coupling in the low-density plasma. We present four…
Polarimetric images of accreting black holes encode important information about laws of strong gravity and relativistic motions of matter. Recent advancements in instrumentation enabled such studies in two objects: supermassive black holes…
We present describe a new computer code that solves the radiative transfer problem on multi-resolution grids. If the cloud model is from an MHD simulation on a regular cartesian grid, criteria based for example on local density or velocity…
Future electromagnetic observations of black holes may allow us to test General Relativity in the strong-field regime. Such tests, however, require knowledge of rotating black hole solutions in modified gravity theories, a class of which…
Wormholes are a hypothetical object that connects disparate points in spacetime. It is a theoretically well-motivated black hole alternative and offers a potential observationally testable arena for probing strong-field gravity with…
The radiative transfer equation (RTE) for polarized light accepts a convenient exponential solution when the absorption matrix commutes with its integral. We characterize some of the matrix depth variations which are compatible with the…
The findings of a nine orbit calibration plan carried out during HST Cycle 15, to fully determine the NICMOS camera 2 (2.0 micron) polarization calibration to high accuracy, are reported. Recently Ueta et al. and Batcheldor et al. have…
The ring-like images of the two supermassive black holes captured by the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) provide powerful probes of the physics of accretion flows at horizon scales. Specifically, the brightness asymmetry in the images carries…
We summarize results from a survey of radiation-dominated black hole accretion flows across a wide range of mass accretion rates, as well as two values of black hole spin and initial magnetic field geometry. These models apply an algorithm…
The emission from galactic black holes and Seyfert galaxies is generally understood in term of two-phase models (Haardt and Maraschi 1991, 1993). Such models postulate that a hot plasma coexists with relatively colder material in the inner…