Related papers: Hierarchical binary black hole mergers in globular…
One striking feature of binary black hole (BBH) mergers observed in the first decade of gravitational-wave astronomy is an excess of events with component masses around $35\,\mathrm{M}_{\odot}$. Multiple formation channels have been…
The relation between the mass and spin of stellar-mass binary black holes (BBHs) has been proposed to be a smoking gun for the presence of multiple formation channels for compact objects. First-generation black holes (BHs) formed by…
Black hole (BH) triples represent one of the astrophysical pathways for BH mergers in the Universe detectable by LIGO and VIRGO. We study the formation of BH triples via binary-binary encounters in dense clusters, showing that one-third of…
The gravitational wave signals detected by the LIGO-Virgo-KAGRA collaboration can be explained by mergers of binary primordial black holes (PBHs) formed in the radiation dominated epoch. However, in early structures induced by the Poisson…
Observations have shown that the majority of massive stars, progenitors of black holes (BHs), have on average more than one stellar companion. In triple systems, wide inner binaries can be driven to a merger by the third body due to…
Supermassive black holes (BH) at the centres of galaxies can rapidly change their mass and spin by gas accretion and mergers. Using hydrodynamical cosmological simulations, with prescriptions for BH growth and feedback from Active Galactic…
Despite a decade's worth of gravitational wave observation, the origin of the binary black hole (BBH) mergers detected by the LIGO-VIRGO-Kagra (LVK) collaboration remains an open question. Towards assessing the feasibility and prevalence of…
The ground-based measurement of gravitational waves (GW) from merging binary black holes (BBH) uniquely allows determination of spins of stellar-remnant black holes (BH), thereby offering insights into their formation mechanisms. The…
The merging black-hole (BH) binaries GW190412, GW190814 and GW190521 from the third LIGO/VIRGO observing run exhibit some extraordinary properties, including highly asymmetric masses, significant spin, and component mass in the "mass gap".…
Since the first signal in 2015, the gravitational-wave detections of merging binary black holes (BBHs) by the LIGO and Virgo collaborations (LVC) have completely transformed our understanding of the lives and deaths of compact object…
The detection of gravitational-wave events revealed that there are numerous populations of black hole (BH) binaries that can merge within the age of the Universe. Although several formation channels of such binaries are known, considerable…
We present a novel self-consistent theoretical framework to characterize the formation, evolution, and merger sites of dynamically-formed black hole binaries, with a focus on explaining the most massive events observed by the…
We simulate mergers between galaxies containing collisionally-relaxed nuclei around massive black holes (MBHs). Our galaxies contain four mass groups, representative of old stellar populations; a primary goal is to understand the…
The detection of gravitational waves from merging black holes with masses $\sim\,80-150\,\mathrm{M_\odot}$ suggests that some proportion of black hole binary systems form hierarchically in dense astrophysical environments, as most stellar…
We perform a systematic study of merging black hole (BH) binaries with compact star (CS) companions, including black hole--white dwarf (BH--WD), black hole--neutron star (BH--NS) and black hole--black hole (BH--BH) systems. Previous studies…
The origin of the mass scaling relation between supermassive black holes (SMBHs, $M_{\rm BH}$) and galaxies ($M_*$) remains a key open question. Rather than invoking AGN feedback, a non-causal mechanism has been proposed in which multiple…
Globular clusters (GCs) are found in all types of galaxies and harbor some of the most extreme stellar systems, including black holes that may dynamically assemble into merging binaries (BBHs). Uncertain GC properties, including when they…
Recent observations of globular clusters (GCs) provide evidence that the stellar initial mass function (IMF) may not be universal, suggesting specifically that the IMF grows increasingly top-heavy with decreasing metallicity and increasing…
Gravitational-wave observations provide the unique opportunity of studying black hole formation channels and histories -- but only if we can identify their origin. One such formation mechanism is the dynamical synthesis of black hole…
The predicted rate of binary black hole mergers from galactic fields can vary over several orders of magnitude and is extremely sensitive to the assumptions of stellar evolution. But in dense stellar environments such as globular clusters,…