Talks

Readings:
Detection of the Schwarzschild precession in the orbit of the star S2 near the Galactic centre massive black hole, GRAVITY collaboration, https://www.aanda.org/articles/aa/pdf/2020/04/aa37813-20.pdf
Testing the No-hair Theorem with Observations in the Electromagnetic Spectrum. III. Quasi-periodic Variability, by Johannsen & Psaltis, https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/0004-637X/726/1/11/pdf
Testing the No-hair Theorem with Observations in the Electromagnetic Spectrum. IV. Relativistically Broadened Iron Lines, by Johannsen & Psaltis, https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/0004-637X/773/1/57/pdf
Testing Gravity with Black Hole X-Ray Data, by C. Bambi, https://arxiv.org/pdf/2210.05322

 

Accreting supermassive binary black holes (SMBBHs), which are the expected outcome of galaxy mergers, are potential powerful multimessenger sources of gravitational waves (GWs) and electromagnetic (EM) radiation. The latter may be periodically modulated by an asymmetric density distribution in the circumbinary disk (CBD), typically referred to as the “lump”. Possible enhancement of this modulation is predicted to occur when considering unequal mass binaries. In that scenario the less massive black hole (often called the "secondary") is expected to consume a majority of the inflowing gas as it gets closer to the inner edge of the CBD possibly dominating the overall EM luminosity. We perform the first set of full 3D general relativistic magnetohydrodynamic (GRMHD) simulations of astrophysically realistic unequal mass (q=1:2) black hole binaries, both spinning and non spinning, embedded in a CBD, adopting the IllinoisGRMHD code. We use relaxed initial data for the CBD retrieved from a previous long-term simulation, performed with the SphericalNR code, which employs curvilinear coordinates and a post-Newtonian (PN) metric with a cutout excising the central region containing the binary. We study the dependence of multiple diagnostics, including the mass accretion rate, the Poynting flux and the mass enclosed at different radii, on the spins of the black holes and their mass ratio. Additionally, we analyze the dynamics and structure of the minidisks surrounding each black hole and the evolution of the jets ejected by them.

Simulations of magnetized binary neutron star mergers often seed the interiors of the initial stars with unrealistically strong magnetic fields to overcome the suppression of small-scale turbulence by finite grid resolution and observe postmerger magnetic collimation and potential jet breakout. We present a curious numerical instability arising from low resolution (227 meters) and high initial dipolar fields ($E_{tot} = 5 \times 10^{49}$ ergs) observed when conducting BNS mergers in a full 3D domain. Initial poloidal structures of sufficient magnitude can linger within the merger remnant, even through the turbulent merger process. Differential rotation then winds these structures into two counterrotating torii separated by the x-y plane. Numerical diffusion inherent to the low resolution grid then causes counterrotating field lines to interact near the x-y plane, leading to spurious magnetic energy dissipation that feeds back into fluid motion. We discuss the consequences of this feedback, including a large circular drift of the merger remnant, and how increased resolution or grid symmetry can alleviate this issue.

We present the first two-dimensional axisymmetric Newtonian magnetohydrodynamic simulations of accretion-induced collapse (AIC) of rotating white dwarfs (WDs) with self-consistent initial magnetic progenitors and neutrino leakage. Our findings show that with initial surface magnetic field strength constrained by isolated WD observations, the protoneutron star can reach field strength consistent with magnetar observations. Our results suggest that single degenerate WDs can form magnetars via AIC.

Accreting supermassive black hole binaries are powerful multimessenger sources emitting both gravitational and electromagnetic (EM) radiation. Understanding the accretion dynamics of these systems and predicting their distinctive EM signals is crucial to informing and guiding upcoming efforts aimed at detecting gravitational waves produced by these binaries. To this end, accurate numerical modeling is required to describe both the spacetime and the magnetized gas around the black holes. In this talk, I will outline two key advancements in this field of research. On the one hand, I will present a novel 3D general relativistic magnetohydrodynamics (GRMHD) framework that combines multiple numerical codes to simulate the inspiral and merger of supermassive black hole binaries starting from realistic initial data and running all the way through merger. Throughout the evolution, we adopt a simple but functional prescription to account for gas cooling through the emission of photons. On the other hand, I will present the application of our new computational method to following the time evolution of a circular, equal-mass, non-spinning black hole binary of total mass ${M}$ for ${\sim\!200}$ orbits starting from a separation of ${20\,r_g\equiv 20\,M}$ and reaching the post-merger evolutionary stage of the system. Our simulation has confirmed the predictions of previous works about the early inspiral phase, but has also revealed phenomena specific to the late-inspiral and merger so far undocumented in the literature. Perhaps our most striking finding is that, although the accretion rate onto the black holes is approximately constant from ${\sim\!3000\,M}$ before merger onward, the EM luminosity undergoes a sharp increase around the time of merger. This effect is caused by the sudden lack of binary torque, which allows the gas in the immediate vicinity of the remnant to quickly fall in, thus compressing and heating up as it shocks. Secondly, the magnetic flux brought to the ${\sim\!0.68\text{-spinning}}$ merger remnant is able to drive a relativistic, Poynting-flux-dominated jet. These dynamics could lead to potentially observable EM signals, supporting upcoming multimessenger observational campaigns.

Amplification of magnetic fields by differential rotation and feedback by magnetic instabilities is one of the main mechanisms for magnetizing a protoneutron star. I will discuss a recent revision of the Tayler instability of strong toroidal fields and its implications for the stably stratified interior of protoneutron stars. If time permits, I will briefly highlight new simulations quantifying the efficiency of the chiral dynamo instability.

Gravitational and electromagnetic signatures of black hole superradiance are a unique probe of ultralight particles that are weakly-coupled to ordinary matter. Through the kinetic mixing with the Standard Model photon, a dark photon superradiance cloud sources a rotating visible electromagnetic field. I will describe how this leads to the production of a turbulent pair plasma, characterized by efficient magnetic reconnection, which radiates large-luminosity high-energy electromagnetic emissions. This enables multi-messenger search strategies to probe unconstrained regions of parameter space.

Magnetic fields play a key role in shaping the dynamics and observational phenomenology of binary neutron star (BNS) mergers. In this talk, I will present results from general relativistic magnetohydrodynamic (GRMHD) simulations performed with the code GR-Athena++, exploring how different initial magnetic field configurations affect the evolution of BNS mergers. We investigated magnetic field amplification, primarily driven by the Kelvin-Helmholtz instability, the post-merger remnant and disk structure, and the characteristics of the ejected material. I will discuss how these processes impact potential electromagnetic counterparts and their detectability. Finally, I will highlight recent advancements in our numerical methods that improve the modeling of magnetized neutron star mergers, paving the way for more accurate predictions of multimessenger signals from these extreme events.

Numerical simulations are essential to understand the complex physics accompanying the merger of binary systems of neutron stars. However, these simulations become computationally challenging when they have to model the merger remnants on timescales over which secular phenomena, such as the launching of magneti- cally driven outflows, develop. To tackle these challenges, we have recently developed a hybrid approach that combines, via a hand-off transition, a fully general-relativistic code (FIL) with a more efficient code mak- ing use of the conformally flat approximation (BHAC+). We here report important additional developments of BHAC+ consisting of the inclusion of gravitational-wave radiation-reaction contributions and of higher-order formulations of the equations of general-relativistic magnetohydrodynamics. Both improvements have allowed us to explore scenarios that would have been computationally prohibitive otherwise. More specifically, we have investigated the impact of the magnetic-field strength on the long-term (i.e., ∼ 200 ms) and high-resolution (i.e., 150 m) evolutions of the “magnetar” resulting from the merger of two neutron stars with a realistic equa- tion of state. In this way, and for sufficiently large magnetic fields, we observe the loss of differential rotation and the generation of magnetic flares in the outer layers of the remnant. These flares, driven mostly by the Parker instability, are responsible for intense and collimated Poynting flux outbursts and low-latitude emissions. This novel phenomenology offers the possibility of seeking corresponding signatures from the observations of short gamma-ray bursts and hence revealing the existence of a long-lived strongly magnetized remnant.