scholarly journals Maximum black hole mass across cosmic time

2021 ◽  
Vol 504 (1) ◽  
pp. 146-154
Author(s):  
Jorick S Vink ◽  
Erin R Higgins ◽  
Andreas A C Sander ◽  
Gautham N Sabhahit
Keyword(s):  
Black Hole ◽  
Massive Star ◽  
Fundamental Problem ◽  
Cosmic Time ◽  
Host Galaxy ◽  
Stellar Winds ◽  
Key Points ◽  
Wave Event ◽  
M Stars ◽  
Proper Consideration

ABSTRACT At the end of its life, a very massive star is expected to collapse into a black hole (BH). The recent detection of an 85  M⊙ BH from the gravitational wave event GW 190521 appears to present a fundamental problem as to how such heavy BHs exist above the approximately 50  M⊙ pair-instability (PI) limit where stars are expected to be blown to pieces with no remnant left. Using mesa, we show that for stellar models with non-extreme assumptions, 90–100  M⊙ stars at reduced metallicity ($Z/\mbox{ $\mathrm{Z}_{\odot }$}\le 0.1$) can produce blue supergiant progenitors with core masses sufficiently small to remain below the fundamental PI limit, yet at the same time lose an amount of mass via stellar winds that is small enough to end up in the range of an ‘impossible’ 85  M⊙ BH. The two key points are the proper consideration of core overshooting and stellar wind physics with an improved scaling of mass-loss with iron (Fe) contents characteristic for the host galaxy metallicity. Our modelling provides a robust scenario that not only doubles the maximum BH mass set by PI, but also allows us to probe the maximum stellar BH mass as a function of metallicity and cosmic time in a physically sound framework.

scholarly journals Forming an “Impossible” 85 solar mass Black Hole

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jorick Vink ◽  
Erin Higgins ◽  
Andreas Sander ◽  
Gautham Sabhahit
Keyword(s):  
Black Holes ◽  
Black Hole ◽  
Galaxy Evolution ◽  
Heavy Element ◽  
Massive Stars ◽  
Fundamental Problem ◽  
Cosmic Time ◽  
Host Galaxy ◽  
Solar Mass ◽  
The Masses

Abstract At the end of its life, a very massive star is expected to collapse into a black hole. The masses of these black holes are pivotal for our understanding of the evolution and fate of these stars, as well as for galaxy evolution and the build-up of black hole masses through Cosmic time. The recent detection of an 85 solar mass black hole from the gravitational wave event GW 190521 appears to present a fundamental problem as to how such heavy black holes exist above the approximately 50 solar mass pair-instability limit where stars are expected to be blown to pieces with no remnant left. Here we show that for stellar models at reduced heavy element content, 90-100 solar mass stars can produce core masses sufficiently small to remain below the fundamental pair-instability limit, yet at the same time lose an amount of mass small enough to end up in an 85 solar mass black hole. A key point is that the amount of mass-loss scales with the host galaxy heavy element fraction, and not with the total amount of element enrichment that occurs naturally during the life of massive stars. Our study shows how our Universe is capable of producing heavy black holes, which are important seeds for the production of supermassive black holes that regulate the evolution of galaxies. Our evolutionary channel to the formation of an 85 solar mass black hole is of fundamental relevance for the manner in which metals are released in the outflows and explosions of the most massive stars, which is shown to be a strong function of Cosmic time.

scholarly journals Very high redshift quasars and the rapid emergence of super-massive black holes

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pavel Kroupa ◽  
Ladislav Subr ◽  
Tereza Jerabkova ◽  
Long Wang
Keyword(s):  
Black Hole ◽  
Massive Star ◽  
High Redshift ◽  
Host Galaxy ◽  
Massive Black Hole ◽  
First Stars ◽  
Massive Black Holes ◽  
Nuclear Cluster ◽  
Gas Accretion ◽  
Very High

Abstract The observation of quasars at very high redshift such as Pōniuā’ena is a challenge for models of super-massive black hole (SMBH) formation. This work presents a study of SMBH formation via known physical processes in star-burst clusters formed at the onset of the formation of their hosting galaxy. While at the early stages hyper-massive star-burst clusters reach the luminosities of quasars, once their massive stars die, the ensuing gas accretion from the still forming host galaxy compresses its stellar black hole (BH) component to a compact state overcoming heating from the BH–BH binaries such that the cluster collapses, forming a massive SMBH-seed within about a hundred Myr. Within this scenario the SMBH–spheroid correlation emerges near-to-exactly. The highest-redshift quasars may thus be hyper-massive star-burst clusters or young ultra-compact dwarf galaxies (UCDs), being the precursors of the SMBHs that form therein within about 200 Myr of the first stars. For spheroid masses ≲ 109.6 M⊙ a SMBH cannot form and instead only the accumulated nuclear cluster remains. The number evolution of the quasar phases with redshift is calculated and the possible problem of missing quasars at very high redshift is raised. SMBH-bearing UCDs and the formation of spheroids are discussed critically in view of the high redshift observations. A possible tension is found between the high star-formation rates (SFRs) implied by downsizing and the observed SFRs, which may be alleviated within the IGIMF theory and if the downsizing times are somewhat longer.

scholarly journals The AGN-galaxy connection: Low-redshift benchmark & lessons learnt

2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (S352) ◽  
pp. 144-156
Author(s):  
Stéphanie Juneau
Keyword(s):  
Black Hole ◽  
Star Formation ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Formation Rate ◽  
Cosmic Time ◽  
Individual Case ◽  
Host Galaxy ◽  
Gas Reservoir ◽  
Lessons Learnt

AbstractSeveral scenarios have been proposed to describe the physical connection between galaxies and their central active galactic nuclei (AGN). This connection could act on a range of spatial scales and vary across cosmic time. In these proceedings, we consider black hole and galaxy growth and whether that growth is affected by AGN feedback both based on statistical approaches – which reveal general population trends – and based on an individual case study – which gives us a more detailed insight on the physical processes at play. For the statistical approach, we showcase a low-redshift (0.04 < z < 0.2) SDSS sample with AGN classification based on a combination of emission-line diagnostic diagrams, and for which we account for sample selection by using a V/Vmax approach. The trends on the star formation rate - stellar mass (SFR – M*) plane suggest that the most likely connection is a common gas reservoir for star formation and AGN, and that they both decline as the gas reservoir is consumed. The trends established at low-redshift could act as a local benchmark against which to compare higher redshift studies. As a complementary approach, we use a detailed case study of a nearby AGN host with integral field spectroscopy from the VLT/MUSE instrument in order to spatially resolve the interplay between AGN feedback and the host galaxy. We find that the galaxy substructure likely plays a role by collimating and/or obscuring the outflows and radiation from the central engine. Ongoing and future work with 3D spectroscopy will enable us to learn more about galaxy and black hole coevolution. Lastly, we briefly discuss lessons learnt from both approaches.

scholarly journals Cosmological simulations of massive black hole seeds: predictions for next-generation electromagnetic and gravitational wave observations

2019 ◽  
Vol 491 (4) ◽  
pp. 4973-4992
Author(s):  
C DeGraf ◽  
D Sijacki
Keyword(s):  
Black Holes ◽  
Black Hole ◽  
Cosmic Time ◽  
Host Galaxy ◽  
Electromagnetic Spectrum ◽  
Massive Black Hole ◽  
Cosmological Simulations ◽  
Seed Formation ◽  
Order Of Magnitude ◽  
Low Mass

ABSTRACT We study how statistical properties of supermassive black holes depend on the frequency and conditions for massive seed formation in cosmological simulations of structure formation. We develop a novel method to recalculate detailed growth histories and merger trees of black holes within the framework of the Illustris simulation for several seed formation models, including a physically motivated model where black hole seeds only form in progenitor galaxies that conform to the conditions for direct collapse black hole formation. While all seed models considered here are in a broad agreement with present observational constraints on black hole populations from optical, UV, and X-ray studies, we find that they lead to widely different black hole number densities and halo occupation fractions, which are currently observationally unconstrained. In terms of future electromagnetic spectrum observations, the faint-end quasar luminosity function and the low-mass-end black hole–host galaxy scaling relations are very sensitive to the specific massive seed prescription. Specifically, the direct collapse model exhibits a seeding efficiency that decreases rapidly with cosmic time and produces much fewer black holes in low-mass galaxies, in contrast to the original Illustris simulation. We further find that the total black hole merger rate varies by more than one order of magnitude for different seed models, with the redshift evolution of the chirp mass changing as well. Supermassive black hole merger detections with LISA and International Pulsar Timing Array may hence provide the most direct means of constraining massive black hole seed formation in the early Universe.

scholarly journals Black hole mass estimation for active galactic nuclei from a new angle

2019 ◽  
Vol 487 (3) ◽  
pp. 3404-3418 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dalya Baron ◽  
Brice Ménard
Keyword(s):  
Black Hole ◽  
Active Galactic Nuclei ◽  
Cosmic Time ◽  
Galactic Nuclei ◽  
Host Galaxy ◽  
Black Hole Mass ◽  
Mass Estimation ◽  
Line Region

Abstract The scaling relations between supermassive black holes and their host galaxy properties are of fundamental importance in the context black hole-host galaxy co-evolution throughout cosmic time. In this work, we use a novel algorithm that identifies smooth trends in complex data sets and apply it to a sample of 2000 type 1 active galactic nuclei (AGNs) spectra. We detect a sequence in emission line shapes and strengths which reveals a correlation between the narrow L([O iii])/L(H β) line ratio and the width of the broad H α. This scaling relation ties the kinematics of the gas clouds in the broad line region to the ionization state of the narrow line region, connecting the properties of gas clouds kiloparsecs away from the black hole to material gravitationally bound to it on sub-parsec scales. This relation can be used to estimate black hole masses from narrow emission lines only. It therefore enables black hole mass estimation for obscured type 2 AGNs and allows us to explore the connection between black holes and host galaxy properties for thousands of objects, well beyond the local Universe. Using this technique, we present the MBH–σ and MBH–M* scaling relations for a sample of about 10 000 type 2 AGNs from Sloan Digital Sky Survey. These relations are remarkably consistent with those observed for type 1 AGNs, suggesting that this new method may perform as reliably as the classical estimate used in non-obscured type 1 AGNs. These findings open a new window for studies of black hole-host galaxy co-evolution throughout cosmic time.

scholarly journals Cygnus X-1 contains a 21–solar mass black hole—Implications for massive star winds

Science ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. eabb3363
Author(s):  
James C. A. Miller-Jones ◽  
Arash Bahramian ◽  
Jerome A. Orosz ◽  
Ilya Mandel ◽  
Lijun Gou ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Black Hole ◽  
Massive Star ◽  
Massive Stars ◽  
High Mass ◽  
Optical Data ◽  
Stellar Winds ◽  
Black Hole Mass ◽  
Solar Mass ◽  
The Masses ◽  
High Metallicity

The evolution of massive stars is influenced by the mass lost to stellar winds over their lifetimes. These winds limit the masses of the stellar remnants (such as black holes) that the stars ultimately produce. We use radio astrometry to refine the distance to the black hole X-ray binary Cygnus X-1, which we find to be 2.22−0.17+0.18 kiloparsecs. When combined with archival optical data, this implies a black hole mass of 21.2 ± 2.2 solar masses, higher than previous measurements. The formation of such a high-mass black hole in a high-metallicity system (within the Milky Way) constrains wind mass loss from massive stars.

scholarly journals Unveiling the enigma of ATLAS17aeu

2019 ◽  
Vol 621 ◽  
pp. A81
Author(s):  
A. Melandri ◽  
A. Rossi ◽  
S. Benetti ◽  
V. D’Elia ◽  
S. Piranomonte ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Black Hole ◽  
Gravitational Wave ◽  
Gamma Ray ◽  
Spectral Energy Distribution ◽  
Spectroscopic Properties ◽  
Host Galaxy ◽  
Spectral Energy ◽  
Binary Black Hole ◽  
Wave Event ◽  
Optical Light Curve

Aims. The unusual transient ATLAS17aeu was serendipitously detected within the sky localisation of the gravitational wave trigger GW 170104. The importance of a possible association with gravitational waves coming from a binary black hole merger led to an extensive follow-up campaign, with the aim of assessing a possible connection with GW 170104. Methods. With several telescopes, we carried out both photometric and spectroscopic observations of ATLAS17aeu, for several epochs, between ∼3 and ∼230 days after the first detection. Results. We studied in detail the temporal and spectroscopic properties of ATLAS17aeu and its host galaxy. Although at low significance and not conclusive, we found similarities to the spectral features of a broad-line supernova superposed onto an otherwise typical long-GRB afterglow. Based on analysis of the optical light curve, spectrum, and host galaxy spectral energy distribution, we conclude that the redshift of the source is probably z ≃ 0.5 ± 0.2. Conclusions. While the redshift range we have determined is marginally compatible with that of the gravitational wave event, the presence of a supernova component and the consistency of this transient with the Ep–Eiso correlation support the conclusion that ATLAS17aeu was associated with the long gamma-ray burst GRB 170105A. This rules out the association of the GRB 170105A/ATLAS17aeu transient with the gravitational wave event GW 170104, which was due to a binary black hole merger.

Quasar black hole masses and accretion rates across cosmic time

2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (S359) ◽  
pp. 57-61
Author(s):  
Michael Brotherton ◽  
Jaya Maithil ◽  
Adam Myers ◽  
Ohad Shemmer ◽  
Brandon Matthews ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Black Hole ◽  
High Redshift ◽  
Cosmic Time ◽  
Small Samples ◽  
Host Galaxy ◽  
Black Hole Mass ◽  
Reverberation Mapping ◽  
Scaling Relationships ◽  
Accretion Rates ◽  
Black Hole Masses

AbstractQuasar black hole masses are most commonly estimated using broad emission lines in single epoch spectra based on scaling relationships determined from reverberation mapping of small samples of low-redshift objects. Several effects have been identified requiring modifications to these scaling relationships, resulting in significant reductions of the black hole mass determinations at high redshift. Correcting these systematic biases is critical to understanding the relationships among black hole and host galaxy properties. We are completing a program using the Gemini North telescope, called the Gemini North Infrared Spectrograph (GNIRS) Distant Quasar Survey (DQS), that has produced rest-frame optical spectra of about 200 high-redshift quasars (z = 1.5–3.5). The GNIRS-DQS will produce new and improved ultraviolet-based black hole mass and accretion rate prescriptions, as well as new redshift prescriptions for velocity zero points of high-z quasars, necessary to measure feedback.

Probing black hole - host galaxy scaling relations with obscured type II AGN

2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (S356) ◽  
pp. 365-365
Author(s):  
Dalya Baron
Keyword(s):  
Black Hole ◽  
Cosmic Time ◽  
Host Galaxy ◽  
Scaling Relations ◽  
Type I ◽  
Type Ii ◽  
Black Hole Mass ◽  
Ionization State ◽  
Line Region ◽  
Black Hole Masses

AbstractThe scaling relations between supermassive black holes and their host galaxy properties are of fundamental importance in the context black hole-host galaxy co-evolution throughout cosmic time. Beyond the local universe, such relations are based on black hole mass estimates in type I AGN. Unfortunately, for this type of objects the host galaxy properties are more difficult to obtain since the AGN dominates the observed flux in most wavelength ranges. In this poster I will present a new correlation we discovered between the narrow L([OIII])/L(Hβ) line ratio and the FWHM(broad Hα). This scaling relation ties the kinematics of the gas clouds in the broad line region to the ionization state of gas in the narrow line region, connecting the properties of gas clouds kiloparsecs away from the black hole to material gravitationally bound to it on sub-parsec scales. This relation can be used to estimate black hole masses from narrow emission lines only, and thus brings the missing piece required to estimate black hole masses in obscured type II AGN. Using this technique, we estimate the black hole mass of about 10,000 type II AGN, and present, for the first time, M(BH)-sigma and M(BH)-M(stars) scaling relations for this population. These relations are remarkably consistent with those observed for type I AGN, suggesting that this new method may perform as reliably as the classical estimate used in non-obscured type I AGN. These findings open a new window for studies of black hole-host galaxy co-evolution throughout cosmic time.

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