Related papers: Fueling processes on (sub-)kpc scales
Massive black holes in galactic nuclei vary their mass M and spin vector J due to accretion. In this study we relax, for the first time, the assumption that accretion can be either chaotic, i.e. when the accretion episodes are randomly and…
One of the main problems raised by the feeding of supermassive black holes (SMBHs) at the centres of galaxies is the huge angular momentum of the circumnuclear gas and of the gas reservoir in the galaxy disk. Because viscous torques are not…
It is argued that supermassive black holes in the nuclei of galaxies most likely have grown coevally with their host dark matter halos. A calculation based on Press-Schechter within this framework shows that the mean rate of accretion of…
Recent observations by the James Webb Space Telescope confirm the existence of massive black holes ($>10^6$ $\rm{M_{\odot}}$) beyond the redshift of $z=10$. However, their formation mechanism(s) still remain an open question. Light seed…
We summarize what large surveys of the contemporary universe have taught us about the physics and phenomenology of the processes that link the formation and evolution of galaxies and their central supermassive black holes. We present a…
The effect of AGN wind feedback on the accretion rate and mass evolution of supermassive black holes (SMBH) is considered. It is shown, under reasonable assumptions, that the rate at which gas can be supplied to a SMBH at the center of a…
The super-Eddington accretion onto intermediate seed BHs is a potential formation mode of supermassive black holes exceeding $10^9~M_\odot$ in the early universe. We here investigate how such rapid accretion may occur with finite amounts of…
A brief summary of the properties of astrophysical black holes is presented. Various modes of accretion are distinguished, corresponding to accretion at rates from well below to well above the Eddington rate. The importance of mass loss is…
Theory predicts that cosmological gas accretion plays a fundamental role fuelling star formation in galaxies. However, a detailed description of the accretion process to be used when interpreting observations is still lacking. Using the…
We investigate the potential impact of mass inflation inside black holes on the dynamics of the Universe, considering a recent reformulation of general relativity, proposed in [1], which prevents the vacuum energy from acting as a…
In the early Universe, while galaxies were still forming, black holes as massive as a billion solar masses powered quasars. Supermassive black holes are found at the centers of most galaxies today, where their masses are related to the…
Spectroscopic and photometric observations show that many globular clusters host multiple stellar populations, challenging the common paradigm that globular clusters are "simple stellar populations" composed of stars of uniform age and…
We study the accretion flow of a hot gas captured by the black hole gravity in the presence of a thin cold accretion disk. Such geometrical arrangement is expected in Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN) and in galactic X-ray binary systems because…
The Milky Way is surrounded by large amounts of gaseous matter that are slowly being accreted over cosmic timescales to support star formation in the disk. The corresponding gas-accretion rate represents a key parameter for the past,…
The close neighbourhood of a supermassive black hole contains not only accreting gas and dust, but also stellar-sized objects like stars, stellar-mass black holes, neutron stars, and dust-enshrouded objects that altogether form a dense…
Black holes, dark energy, and the Higgs field are all currently established, exciting, and mysterious, each in its own way. Cosmological data show that dark energy may evolve with time. The electroweak phase transition during stellar…
We present analytic calculations of angular momentum transport and gas inflow in galaxies, from scales of ~kpc to deep in the potential of a central black hole (BH). We compare these analytic calculations to numerical simulations and use…
Asymmetries in galactic potentials, either self-induced, or caused by a passing companion, play an important role in global gas dynamics in galaxies. In particular, they are able to trigger gas inflow, which in turn feeds nuclear activity.…
The close neighbourhood of a supermassive black hole contains not only the accreting gas and dust but also stellar-sized objects, such as late-type and early-type stars and compact remnants that belong to the nuclear star cluster. When…
Dense gas in the centre of galaxies feeds massive black holes, but can also become a source of obscuration and limit our ability to find faint Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN). We use a high resolution cosmological radiative hydrodynamics…