Rapid Formation of Supermassive Black Hole Binaries in Galaxy Mergers with Gas

Journal Article · Mon Mar 24 00:00:00 EDT 2008 · Science 316:1874-1877,2007

OSTI ID:926193

Mayer, L; Kazantzidis, S; Madau, P; Colpi, M; Quinn, T; Wadsley, J

Supermassive black holes (SMBHs) are a ubiquitous component of the nuclei of galaxies. It is normally assumed that, following the merger of two massive galaxies, a SMBH binary will form, shrink due to stellar or gas dynamical processes and ultimately coalesce by emitting a burst of gravitational waves. However, so far it has not been possible to show how two SMBHs bind during a galaxy merger with gas due to the difficulty of modeling a wide range of spatial scales. Here we report hydrodynamical simulations that track the formation of a SMBH binary down to scales of a few light years following the collision between two spiral galaxies. A massive, turbulent nuclear gaseous disk arises as a result of the galaxy merger. The black holes form an eccentric binary in the disk in less than a million years as a result of the gravitational drag from the gas rather than from the stars.

• Research Organization: Stanford Linear Accelerator Center (SLAC)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE
• DOE Contract Number: AC02-76SF00515
• OSTI ID: 926193
• Report Number(s): SLAC-PUB-13168
• Journal Information: Science 316:1874-1877,2007, Journal Name: Science 316:1874-1877,2007 Vol. 316; ISSN 0193-4511; ISSN SCEHDK
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS
GENERAL PHYSICS
79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS
Astrophysics
ASTRO
BLACK HOLES
GALAXIES
GRAVITATIONAL WAVES
NUCLEI
SIMULATION
STARS