Hostname: page-component-84b7d79bbc-g78kv Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-07-25T08:09:57.820Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Missing Link Found? — The “runaway” path to supermassive black holes

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 May 2016

Toshikazu Ebisuzaki
Toshikazu Ebisuzaki*
Affiliation:
Advanced Computer Center, RIKEN, 2-1 Hirosawa, Wako 351-0198, Japan

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.

Observations of stellar kinematics, gas dynamics and masers around galactic nuclei have now firmly established that many galaxies host central supermassive black holes (SMBHs) with masses in the range 106 ∼ 109M⊙. However, how these SMBHs formed is not well understood. One reason for this situation is the lack of observations of intermediate-mass BHs (IMBHs), which could bridge the gap between stellar-mass BHs and SMBHs. Recently, this missing link (i.e., an IMBH) has been found in observations made by ASCA and Chandra of the central region of the starburst galaxy M82 (Matsumoto and Tsuru 1999, Ptak and Griffith 1999, Matsumoto et al. 2001, Kaaret et al. 2001). Subsequent observations by SUBARU have revealed that this IMBH apparently coincides with a young compact star cluster. Based on these findings, we propose a new formation scenario for SMBHs. In this scenario, IMBHs first form in young compact star clusters through runaway merging of massive stars. While these IMBHs are forming, the host star clusters sink toward the galactic nucleus through dynamical friction, and upon evaporation deposit their IMBHs near the galactic center. The IMBHs then form binaries and eventually merge via gravitational radiation, forming an SMBH.

Type
Galactic Nuclei
Information
Symposium - International Astronomical Union , Volume 208: Astrophysical Supercomputing using Particle Simulations , 2003 , pp. 157 - 166
Copyright
Copyright © Astronomical Society of the Pacific 2003 

References

Bahcall, J. N., and Wolf, R. A., 1976, ApJ, 209, 21 Google Scholar
Begelman, M. C., Blandford, R. D., and Rees, M. J., 1980, Nature, 287, 307 Google Scholar
Binney, J. and Tremaine, S., 1987, Galactic Dynamics , Princeton University Press, Princeton.Google Scholar
Colbert, E.J.M. and Mushotzky, R.F., 1999, ApJ, 519, 89 Google Scholar
de Grijs, R., O'Connell, R. W., and Gallagher, J. S., 2001, AJ, 121, 768 CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Harashima, T., et al., 2002, in preparation Google Scholar
Hut, P. and Inagaki, S., 1985, ApJ, 298, 502 Google Scholar
Jafry, Y.R., Cornelisse, J., and Reinhard, R., 1994, LISA - a laser interferometer space antenna for gravitational-wave measurements. ESA Journal 18: 219–228 Google Scholar
Kaaret, P., Prestwich, A.H., Zezas, A., Murray, S.S., Kim, D.W., Kilgard, R.E., Schlegel, E.M., and Ward, M.J., 2001, MNRAS, 321, L29 Google Scholar
Kormendy, J. and McClure, R.D., 1993, AJ, 105, 1793 Google Scholar
Kormendy, J. and Richstone, D., 1995, ARA&A, 33, 581 Google Scholar
Lee, H.M., 1987, ApJ, 319, 801 Google Scholar
Magorrian, et al., 1998, AJ, 115, 2285 Google Scholar
Makino, J., Fukushige, T., Okumura, S.K., and Ebisuzaki, T., 1993, PASJ, 45, 303 Google Scholar
Makino, J., 1997, ApJ, 478, 58 Google Scholar
Makishima, K. et al. 2000, ApJ, 535, 632 CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Matsumoto, H. and Tsuru, T., 1999, PASJ, 51, 321 CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Matsumoto, H., Tsuru, T., Koyama, K., Awaki, H., Canizares, C.R., Kawai, N., Matsushita, S., and Kawabe, R. 2001, ApJ, 547, L25 Google Scholar
Matsushita, S., Kawabe, R., Matsumoto, H., Tsuru, T. G., Kohno, K., Morita, K., Okumura, S.K., and Vila-Vilar, B. 2000, ApJ, 545, L107 CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Marchant, A. B. and Shapiro, S. L., 1980, ApJ, 239, 685 CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McMillan, S. L. W., 1986, ApJ, 306, 552.Google Scholar
Merritt, D. to appear in “Galaxy Dynamics: From the Early Universe to the Present”, eds. Combes, F., Mamon, G. and Charmandaris, V..Google Scholar
Merritt, D. and Ferrarese, L., 2001, MNRAS, 320, L30.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Portegies Zwart, S.F., Makino, J., McMillan, S. L. W., and Hut, P., 1999, A&A, 348, 117 Google Scholar
Portegies Zwart, S.F., and McMillan, S. L. W., 2000, ApJ, 528, L17 Google Scholar
Portegies Zwart, S.F., Makino, J., McMillan, S. L. W., and Hut, P., 2001a, ApJ, 546, L101 Google Scholar
Portegies Zwart, S.F. Makino, J. McMillan, S.L.W., and Hut, P., 2001b, ApJ in press.Google Scholar
Ptak, A. and Griffith, R., 1999, ApJ, 535, L85 Google Scholar
Quinlan, G.D. and Hernquist, L., 1997, New Astronomy, 2, 533.Google Scholar
Rees, M. J., 1978, The Observatory, 98, 210.Google Scholar
Rees, M. J., 1984, ARA&A, 22, 471.Google Scholar
Taniguchi, Y., Shioya, Y., Tsuru, T.G., Ikeuchi, S., 2000, PASJ, 52, 533 Google Scholar