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Effects of the Central Density Profile and the Stellar Mass Function of Merging Galaxies on Eccentricities and Coalescence Times of Supermassive Black Hole Binaries

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 October 2016

Fazeel Mahmood Khan ,
Peter Berczik  and
Andreas Just
Fazeel Mahmood Khan
Affiliation:
Department of Space Science, Institute of Space Technology, P. O. Box 2750 Islamabad, Pakistan
Peter Berczik
Affiliation:
National Astronomical Observatories of China, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Main Astronomical Observatory, Kyiv, Ukraine Astronomisches Rechen-Institut, Zentrum für Astronomie, Univ. of Heidelberg, Mönchhof-Strasse 12-14, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
Andreas Just
Affiliation:
Astronomisches Rechen-Institut, Zentrum für Astronomie, Univ. of Heidelberg, Mönchhof-Strasse 12-14, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
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Abstract

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If able to coalesce in a Hubble time, Supermassive Black hole (SMBH) binaries are very promising sources of gravitational waves (GW). Our earlier studies have shown that SMBH binaries coalesce in post-merger galactic nuclei having triaxial or axisymmetric geometry in a few billion years. In this study, we model the complete evolution of SMBH binaries formed as a result of galaxy mergers having central density profiles that vary from shallow to very steep including a stellar mass function. Energy and angular momentum loss due to GW emission is taken into account using the post-Newtonian approximation. We carry out ten such simulations for each central density profile. The eccentricity of the SMBH binaries remain very high in shallow cusps and decrease systematically for steeper cusps. The coalescence times range from 0.6 to 1.5 Gyr with shorter times for steeper profiles. Typical coalescence times less than a Gyr strengthen our expectation that SMBH binaries should be very promising sources of GW radiation over a wide redshift range.

Keywords

Stellar dynamicsblack hole physicsGalaxies: kinematics and dynamicsGalaxy: center
Type
Contributed Papers
Information
Proceedings of the International Astronomical Union , Volume 11 , General Assembly A29B: Astronomy in Focus , August 2015 , pp. 311 - 313
Copyright
Copyright © International Astronomical Union 2016 

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