Related papers: Black Hole Demographics
We analyze a sample of 32 galaxies for which a dynamical estimate of the mass of the hot stellar component, M_bulge, is available. For each of these galaxies, we calculate the mass of the central black hole, M_BH, using the tight empirical…
The purpose of this chapter is to provide an overview of the exciting field of black hole quasi-normal modes and its capabilities to test general relativity in the 21st century. After motivating this line of research, we provide a…
Populations of stellar-mass black holes (BHs) in globular clusters (GCs) influence their dynamical evolution and have important implications on one of the main formation channels for gravitational wave sources. Inferring the size of these…
The growth of black holes and the formation and evolution of galaxies appear to be linked at such a fundamental level that we think of the two as `co-evolving.' Recent observations show that this co-evolution may be complex and the result…
Despite traditional thinking, an appreciable population of massive black holes may be lurking in dwarf galaxies. Prior to the last decade, nearly all massive black holes were found in the nuclei of giant galaxies and the existence of…
Recent years have seen tremendous progress in the quest to detect supermassive black holes in the centers of nearby galaxies, and gas-dynamical measurements of the central masses of active galaxies have been valuable contributions to the…
The presence of supermassive black holes at redshift z > 6 raises some questions about their formation and growth in the early universe. Due to the construction of new telescopes like the ELT to observe and detect SMBHs, it will be useful…
We present an empirical approach for interpreting gravitational wave signals of binary black hole mergers under the assumption that the underlying black hole population is sourced by remnants of stellar evolution. Using the observed…
In the now well established conventional view (see Rees [1] and references therein), quasi-stellar objects (QSOs) and related active galactic nuclei (AGN) phenomena are explained as the result of accretion of plasma onto giant black holes…
[Abridged] [...] We study the mass and spin evolution of massive black holes within a semianalytical galaxy-formation model that follows the evolution of dark-matter halos along merger trees, as well as that of the baryonic components (hot…
The formation and growth of supermassive black holes (SMBHs) remain a significant unsolved problem in astrophysics, particularly in the low-mass regime, where observations are sparse. The Habitable Worlds Observatory (HWO), with its…
This paper studies the interpretation of physics near a Schwarzschild black hole. A scenario for creation and growth is proposed that avoids the conundrum of information loss. In this picture the horizon recedes as it is approached and has…
These notes are from three lectures given at the 54th Saas-Fee Advanced Course of the Swiss Society of Astrophysics and Astronomy in January 2025. This chapter reviews the dramatic evolution in our understanding of supermassive black holes…
I briefly outline recent theoretical developments on the formation of the first massive black holes (MBHs) that may grow into the population of MBHs powering quasars and inhabiting galactic centers today. I also touch upon possible…
I review a new (and still tentative) approach to black hole thermodynamics that seeks to explain black hole entropy in terms of microscopic quantum gravitational boundary states induced on the black hole horizon.
We investigate the accretion-driven growth of supermassive black holes in the low-redshift Universe using 23,000 ``Type 2'' AGN and the complete sample of 123,000 galaxies in the SDSS from which they were drawn. We use the stellar velocity…
I report on recent progress in the exciting field of Numerical Relativity, with special attention to black hole horizons.
After a brief historical introduction, we summarize current efforts and accomplishments in the study of supermassive black holes.
We give a brief overview of the black hole information problem emphasizing fundamental issues and recent proposals for its resolution. The focus is on broad perspective and providing a guide to current literature rather than presenting full…
We use data from large surveys of the local Universe (SDSS+Galaxy Zoo) to show that the galaxy-black hole connection is linked to host morphology at a fundamental level. The fraction of early-type galaxies with actively growing black holes,…