General Relativistic Simulations Research Articles

Evolution of equal mass binary bare quark stars in full general relativity: Could a supramassive merger remnant experience prompt collapse?

We have evolved mergers of equal-mass binary quark stars, the total mass of which is close to the mass shedding limit of uniformly rotating configurations, in fully general relativistic hydrodynamic simulations, aimed at investigating the post-merger outcomes. In particular, we have identified the threshold mass for prompt black hole formation after the merger, by tracing the minimum lapse function as well as the amount of ejected material during the merger simulation. A semi-analytical investigation based on the angular momentum contained in the merger remnant is also performed to verify the results. For the equation of state considered in this work, the maximum mass of TOV solutions for which is 2.10 $M_\odot$, the threshold mass is found between 3.05 and 3.10 $M_\odot$. This result is consistent (with a quantitative error smaller than 1%) with the universal relation derived from the numerical results of symmetric binary neutron star mergers. Contrary to the neutron star case, the threshold mass is close to the mass shedding limit of uniformly rotating quark star. Consequently, we have found that binary quark stars with total mass corresponding to the long-lived supramassive remnant for neutron star case, could experience collapse to black hole within several times dynamical timescale, making quark stars as exceptions of the commonly accepted post-merger scenarios for binary neutron star mergers. We have suggested explanation for both the similarity and the difference, between quark stars and neutron stars.

Self-gravitating disks around rapidly spinning, tilted black holes: General-relativistic simulations

We perform general relativistic simulations of self-gravitating black hole-disks in which the spin of the black hole is significantly tilted ($45^\circ$ and $90^\circ$) with respect to the angular momentum of the disk and the disk-to-black hole mass ratio is $16\%-28\%$. The black holes are rapidly spinning with dimensionless spins up to $\sim 0.97$. These are the first self-consistent hydrodynamic simulations of such systems, which can be prime sources for multimessenger astronomy. In particular tilted black hole-disk systems lead to: i) black hole precession; ii) disk precession and warping around the black hole; iii) earlier saturation of the Papaloizou-Pringle instability compared to aligned/antialigned systems, although with a shorter mode growth timescale; iv) acquisition of a small black-hole kick velocity; v) significant gravitational wave emission via various modes beyond, but as strong as, the typical $(2,2)$ mode; and vi) the possibility of a broad alignment of the angular momentum of the disk with the black hole spin. This alignment is not related to the Bardeen-Petterson effect and resembles a solid body rotation. Our simulations suggest that any electromagnetic luminosity from our models may power relativistic jets, such as those characterizing short gamma-ray bursts. Depending on the black hole-disk system scale the gravitational waves may be detected by LIGO/Virgo, LISA and/or other laser interferometers.

Implications from the Velocity Profile of the M87 Jet: A Possibility of a Slowly Rotating Black Hole Magnetosphere

Motivated by the measured velocity profile of the M87 jet using the Korean very-long-baseline interferometry (VLBI) network (KVN) and VLBI Exploration of Radio Astrometry (VERA) Array (KaVA) by Park et al. indicating that the starting position of the jet acceleration is farther from the central engine of the jet than predicted in general relativistic magnetohydrodynamic simulations, we explore how to mitigate the apparent discrepancy between the simulations and the KaVA observation. We use a semi-analytic jet model proposed by Tomimatsu & Takahashi consistently solving the transmagnetic field structure but neglecting any dissipation effects. By comparing the jet model with the observed M87 jet velocity profile, we find that the model can reproduce the logarithmic feature of the velocity profile and can fit the observed data when choosing c/(100r g ) ≲ Ω F ≲ c/(70r g ), where r g is the gravitational radius. While a total specific energy () of the jet changes the terminal bulk Lorentz factor of the jet, a slower angular velocity of the black hole magnetosphere (Ω F ) makes a light-cylinder radius (r lc) larger, and it consequently pushes out a location of a starting point of the jet acceleration. Using the estimated Ω F we further estimate the magnetic field strength on the event horizon scale in M87 by assuming Blandford–Znajek process is in action. The corresponding magnetic flux threading the event horizon of M87 is in good agreement with a magnetically arrested disk regime.

The Role of Strong Magnetic Fields in Stabilizing Highly Luminous Thin Disks

We present and analyze a set of three-dimensional, global, general relativistic radiation magnetohydrodynamic simulations of thin, radiation-pressure-dominated accretion disks surrounding a nonrotating, stellar-mass black hole. The simulations are initialized using the Shakura–Sunyaev model with a mass accretion rate of (corresponding to L = 0.17L Edd). Our previous work demonstrated that such disks are thermally unstable when accretion is driven by an α-viscosity. In the present work, we test the hypothesis that strong magnetic fields can both drive accretion through magnetorotational instability and restore stability to such disks. We test four initial magnetic field configurations: (1) a zero-net-flux case with a single, radially extended set of magnetic field loops (dipole), (2) a zero-net-flux case with two radially extended sets of magnetic field loops of opposite polarity stacked vertically (quadrupole), (3) a zero-net-flux case with multiple radially concentric rings of alternating polarity (multiloop), and (4) a net-flux, vertical magnetic field configuration (vertical). In all cases, the fields are initially weak, with a gas-to-magnetic pressure ratio ≳100. Based on the results of these simulations, we find that the dipole and multiloop configurations remain thermally unstable like their α-viscosity counterpart, in our case collapsing vertically on the local thermal timescale and never fully recovering. The vertical case, on the other hand, stabilizes and remains so for the duration of our tests (many thermal timescales). The quadrupole case is intermediate, showing signs of both stability and instability. The key stabilizing factor is the ability of specific field configurations to build up and sustain strong, P mag ≳ 0.5P tot, toroidal fields near the midplane of the disk. We discuss the reasons why certain configurations are able to do this effectively and others are not. We then compare our stable simulations to the standard Shakura–Sunyaev disk.

Effects of Hydrogen versus Helium on Electromagnetic Black Hole Observables

The centers of our Galaxy and the nearby Messier 87 are known to contain supermassive black holes, which support accretion flows that radiate across the electromagnetic spectrum. Although the composition of the accreting gas is unknown, it is likely a mix of ionized hydrogen and helium. We use a simple analytic model and a suite of numerical general relativistic magnetohydrodynamic accretion simulations to study how polarimetric images and spectral energy distributions of the source are influenced by the hydrogen/helium content of the accreting matter. We aim to identify general trends rather than make quantitatively precise predictions, since it is not possible to fully explore the parameter space of accretion models. If the ion-to-electron temperature ratio is fixed, then increasing the helium fraction increases the gas temperature; to match the observational flux density constraints, the number density of electrons and magnetic field strengths must therefore decrease. In our numerical simulations, emission shifts from regions of low to high plasma β—both altering the morphology of the image and decreasing the variability of the light curve—especially in strongly magnetized models with emission close to the midplane. In polarized images, we find that the model gas composition influences the degree to which linear polarization is (de)scrambled and therefore affects estimates for the resolved linear polarization fraction. We also find that the spectra of helium-composition flows peak at higher frequencies and exhibit higher luminosities. We conclude that gas composition may play an important role in predictive models for black hole accretion.

Dynamical Unification of Tidal Disruption Events

The ∼100 tidal disruption events (TDEs) observed so far exhibit a wide range of emission properties both at peak and over their lifetimes. Some TDEs radiate predominantly at X-ray energies, while others radiate chiefly at UV and optical wavelengths. While the peak luminosities across TDEs show distinct properties, the evolutionary behavior can also vary between TDEs with similar peak emission properties. In particular, for optical TDEs, while their UV and optical emissions decline somewhat following the fallback pattern, some events can greatly rebrighten in X-rays at late time. In this Letter, we conduct three-dimensional general relativistic radiation magnetohydrodynamics simulations of TDE accretion disks at varying accretion rates in the regime of super-Eddington accretion. We make use of Monte Carlo radiative transfer simulations to calculate the reprocessed spectra at various inclinations and at different evolutionary stages. We confirm the unified model proposed by Dai et al., which predicts that the observed emission largely depends on the viewing angle of the observer with respect to the disk orientation. Furthermore, we find that disks with higher accretion rates have elevated wind and disk densities, which increases the reprocessing of the high-energy radiation and thus generally augments the optical-to-X-ray flux ratio along a particular viewing angle. This implies that at later times, as the accretion level declines, we expect that more X-rays will leak out along intermediate viewing angles. Such dynamical model for TDEs can provide a natural explanation for the diversity in the emission properties observed in TDEs at peak and along their temporal evolution.

Extending GRMHD for thin disks to non-Kerr spacetimes

Black hole based tests of general relativity have proliferated in recent times with new and improved detectors and telescopes. Modeling of the black hole neighborhood, where most of the radiation carrying strong-field signature originates, is of utmost importance for robust and accurate constraints on possible violations of general relativity. As a first step, this paper presents the extension of general relativistic magnetohydrodynamic simulations of thin accretion disks to parametrically deformed black holes that generalize the Kerr solution. The extension is based on harmpi, a publicly available member of the harm family of codes, and uses a phenomenological metric to study parametric deviations away from Kerr. The extended model is used to study the disk structure, stability, and radiative efficiency. We also compute the Fe $\mathrm{K}\ensuremath{\alpha}$ profiles in simplified scenarios and present an outlook for the future.

Detectability of the gravitational-wave background produced by magnetar giant flares

We study the gravitational-wave background produced by f-mode oscillations of neutron stars triggered by magnetar giant flares. For the gravitational-wave energy, we use analytic formulae obtained via general relativistic magnetohydrodynamic simulations of strongly magnetized neutron stars. Assuming the magnetar giant flare rate is proportional to the star-formation rate, we show the gravitational-wave signal is likely undetectable by third-generation detectors such as the Einstein Telescope and Cosmic Explorer. We calculate the minimum value of the magnetic field and the magnetar giant flare rate necessary for such a signal to be detectable, and discuss these in the context of our current understanding of magnetar flares throughout the Universe.

Stability analysis of supermassive primordial stars: a new mass range for general relativistic instability supernovae

ABSTRACT Observed supermassive black holes in the early Universe have several proposed formation channels in part because most of these channels are difficult to probe. One of the more promising channels, the direct collapse of a supermassive star has several possible probes including the explosion of a helium-core supermassive star triggered by a general relativistic instability. We develop a straightforward method for evaluating the general relativistic radial instability without simplifying assumptions and apply it to population III supermassive stars taken from a post Newtonian stellar evolution code. This method is more accurate than previous determinations and it finds that the instability occurs earlier in the evolutionary life of the star. Using the results of the stability analysis, we perform 1D general relativistic hydrodynamical simulations, and we find two general relativistic instability supernovae fuelled by alpha capture reactions as well as several lower mass pulsations, analogous to the puslational pair instability process. The mass range for the events ($2.6-3.0\times 10^4{\rm M}_\odot$) is lower than that had been suggested by previous works ($5.5\times 10^4{\rm M}_\odot$), because the instability occurs earlier in the star’s evolution. The explosion may be visible to among others JWST, while the discovery of the pulsations opens up additional possibilities for observation.

The Details of Limb Brightening Reveal the Structure of the Base of the Jet in M87 for the First Time

It has become commonplace in astronomy to describe the transverse coarse structure of jets in loosely defined terms such as “sheath” and “spine” based on discussions of parsec scale properties. But, the applicability, dimension, and prominence of these features on sub-light-year scales has previously been unconstrained by observation. The first direct evidence of jet structure near the source in M87 is extreme limb brightening (a double-rail morphology), 0.3–0.6 mas from the source, which is prominent in observations with high resolution and sensitivity. Intensity crosscuts of these images provide three strong, interdependent constraints on the geometry responsible for the double-rail morphology: the rail to rail separation, the peak to trough intensity ratio, and the rail widths. Analyzing these constraints indicates that half or more of the jet volume resides in a thick-walled, tubular, mildly relativistic, protonic jet only ∼0.25 lt-yr (or ∼300 M, where M is the central black hole mass in geometrized units) from the source. By contrast, the Event Horizon Telescope Collaboration interprets their observations with the aid of general relativistic magnetohydrodynamic simulations that produce an invisible (by construction) jet with a surrounding luminous, thin sheath. Yet, it is shown that synthetic images of simulated jets are center brightened 0.3–0.6 mas from the source. This serious disconnection with observation occurs in a region previously claimed in the literature to be well represented by the simulations. The limb brightening analysis motivates a discussion of possible simulation modifications to improve conformance with observations.

Blacklight: A General-relativistic Ray-tracing and Analysis Tool

We describe the Blacklight code, intended for postprocessing general-relativistic magnetohydrodynamic simulation data. Beyond polarized ray tracing of synchrotron radiation, it can produce a number of outputs that aid in analyzing data sets, such as maps of auxiliary quantities and false-color renderings. Additional features include support for adaptive mesh refinement input, slow-light calculations, and adaptive ray tracing. The code is written with ease of use, readability, and transparency as primary objectives, while it still achieves high performance. Blacklight is publicly available and released into the public domain.

Impact of ultralight bosonic dark matter on the dynamical bar-mode instability of rotating neutron stars

We investigate the effects ultralight bosonic field dark matter may have on the dynamics of unstable differentially rotating neutron stars prone to the bar-mode instability. To this aim we perform numerical simulations in general relativity of rotating neutron stars accreting an initial spherically symmetric bosonic field cloud, solving the Einstein-(complex, massive) Klein-Gordon-Euler and the Einstein-(complex) Proca-Euler systems. We find that the presence of the bosonic field can critically modify the development of the bar-mode instability of neutron stars, depending on the total mass of the bosonic field and on the boson particle mass. In some cases, the accreting bosonic field can even quench the dominant $\ensuremath{\ell}=m=2$ mode of the bar-deformation by dynamically forming a mixed (fermion-boson) star that retains part of the angular momentum of the original neutron star. However, the mixed star undergoes the development of a mixed bar that leads to significant gravitational-wave emission, substantially different to that of the isolated neutron star. Our results indicate that dark-matter accretion in neutron stars could change the frequency of the expected emission of the bar-mode instability, which would have an important impact on ongoing searches for continuous gravitational waves.

Modeling the Gamma-Ray Burst Jet Properties with 3D General Relativistic Simulations of Magnetically Arrested Accretion Flows

We investigate the dependence of the gamma-ray burst (GRB) jet structure and its evolution on the properties of the accreting torus in the central engine. Our models numerically evolve the accretion disk around a Kerr black hole using three-dimensional general relativistic magnetohydrodynamic simulations. We use two different analytical hydrodynamical models of the accretion disk, based on the Fishbone–Moncrief and Chakrabarti solutions, as our initial states for the structure of the collapsar disk and the remnant after a binary neutron star (BNS) merger, respectively. We impose poloidal magnetic fields of two different geometries upon the initial stable solutions. We study the formation and evolution of the magnetically arrested disk state and its effect on the properties of the emitted jet. The jets produced in our models are structured and have a relatively hollow core and reach higher Lorentz factors at an angle ≳9° from the axis. The jet in our short GRB model has an opening angle of up to ∼25° while our long GRB engine produces a narrower jet, of up to ∼11°. We also study the time variability of the jets and provide an estimate of the minimum variability timescale in our models. The application of our models to the GRB jets in the BNS postmerger system and to the ultrarelativistic jets launched from collapsing stars are briefly discussed.

Component of Energy Flow from Supercritical Accretion Disks Around Rotating Stellar Mass Black Holes

By performing two-dimensional axisymmetric general relativistic radiation magnetohydrodynamics simulations with spin parameter a* varying from −0.9 to 0.9, we investigate the dependence on the black hole spin of the energy flow from a supercritical accretion disk around a stellar mass black hole. It is found that optically and geometrically thick disks form near the equatorial plane, and a part of the disk matter is launched from the disk surface in all models. The gas ejection is mainly driven by the radiative force, but magnetic force cannot be neglected when ∣a*∣ is large. The energy outflow efficiency (total luminosity normalized by and c are the mass-accretion rate at the event horizon and the light speed) is higher for rotating black holes than for nonrotating black holes. This is 0.7% for a* = −0.7, 0.3% for a* = 0, and 5% for a* = 0.7 for (L Edd is the Eddington luminosity). Furthermore, although the energy is mainly released by radiation when a* ∼ 0, the Poynting power increases with ∣a*∣ and exceeds the radiative luminosity for models with a* ≥ 0.5 and a* ≤ −0.7. The faster the black hole rotates, the higher the power ratio of the kinetic luminosity to the isotropic luminosity tends to be. This implies that objects with a high (low) power ratio may have rapidly (slowly) rotating black holes. Among ultraluminous X-ray sources, IC342 X-1, is a candidate with a rapidly rotating black hole.

Investigating the X-ray polarization of lamp-post coronae in BHXRBs

ABSTRACT High-sensitivity X-ray polarimetric observations of black hole X-ray binaries, which will soon become available with the launches of space-borne X-ray observatories with sensitive X-ray polarimeters, will be able to put independent constraints on the black hole as well as the accretion flow, and possibly break degeneracies that cannot be resolved by spectral/timing observations alone. In this work, we perform a series of general relativistic Monte Carlo radiative transfer simulations to study the expected polarization properties of X-ray radiation emerging from lamp-post coronae in black hole X-ray binaries. We find that the polarization degree of the coronal emission of black hole X-ray binaries is sensitive to the spin of the black hole, the height of the corona, and the dynamics of the corona.

GRMHD simulations of accreting neutron stars with non-dipole fields

ABSTRACT NASA’s NICER telescope has recently provided evidence for non-dipolar magnetic field structures in rotation-powered millisecond pulsars. These stars are assumed to have gone through a prolonged accretion spin-up phase, begging the question of what accretion flows on to stars with complex magnetic fields would look like. We present results from a suite of general relativistic magnetohydrodynamic simulations of accreting neutron stars for dipole, quadrupole, and quadrudipolar stellar field geometries. This is a first step towards simulating realistic hotspot shapes in a general relativistic framework to understand hotspot variability in accreting millisecond pulsars. We find that the location and size of the accretion columns resulting in hotspots changes significantly depending on initial stellar field strength and geometry. We also find that the strongest contributions to the stellar torque are from disc-connected field lines and the pulsar wind, leading to spin-down in almost the entire parameter regime explored here. We further analyse angular momentum transport in the accretion disc due to large-scale magnetic stresses, turbulent stresses, and wind and compressible effects which we identify with convective motions. The disc collimates the initial open stellar flux forming jets. For dipoles, the disc–magnetosphere interaction can either enhance or reduce jet power compared to the isolated case. However for quadrupoles, the disc always leads to an enhanced net open flux making the jet power comparable to the dipolar case. We discuss our results in the context of observed neutron star jets and provide a viable mechanism to explain radio power both in the low- and high-magnetic field case.

Electromagnetic Counterparts of Binary-neutron-star Mergers Leading to a Strongly Magnetized Long-lived Remnant Neutron Star

We explore the electromagnetic counterparts that will associate with binary-neutron-star mergers for the case that remnant massive neutron stars survive for ≳0.5 s after the merger. For this study, we employ the outflow profiles obtained by long-term general-relativistic neutrino-radiation magnetohydrodynamics simulations with a mean-field dynamo effect. We show that a synchrotron afterglow with high luminosity can be associated with the merger event if the magnetic fields of the remnant neutron stars are significantly amplified by the dynamo effect. We also perform a radiative transfer calculation for kilonovae and find that, for the highly amplified magnetic field cases, the kilonovae can be bright in the early epoch (t ≤ 0.5 d), while it shows the optical emission which rapidly declines in a few days and the very bright near-infrared emission which lasts for ∼10 days. All these features have not been found in GW170817, indicating that the merger remnant neutron star formed in GW170817 might have collapsed to a black hole within several hundreds milliseconds or magnetic-field amplification might be a minor effect.

On the Jet–Ejecta Interaction in 3D GRMHD Simulations of a Binary Neutron Star Merger Aftermath

Short γ-ray burst (sGRB) jets form in the aftermath of a neutron star merger, drill through disk winds and dynamical ejecta, and extend over four to five orders of magnitude in distance before breaking out of the ejecta. We present the first 3D general-relativistic magnetohydrodynamic sGRB simulations to span this enormous scale separation. They feature three possible outcomes: jet+cocoon, cocoon, and neither. Typical sGRB jets break out of the dynamical ejecta if (i) the bound ejecta’s isotropic equivalent mass along the pole at the time of the BH formation is ≲10−4 M ⊙, setting a limit on the delay time between the merger and BH formation, otherwise, the jets perish inside the ejecta and leave the jet-inflated cocoon to power a low-luminosity sGRB; (ii) the postmerger remnant disk contains a strong large-scale vertical magnetic field, ≳1015 G; and (iii) if the jets are weak (≲1050 erg), the ejecta’s isotropic equivalent mass along the pole must be small (≲10−2 M ⊙). Generally, the jet structure is shaped by the early interaction with disk winds rather than the dynamical ejecta. As long as our jets break out of the ejecta, they retain a significant magnetization (≲1), suggesting that magnetic reconnection is a fundamental property of sGRB emission. The angular structure of the outflow isotropic equivalent energy after breakout consistently features a flat core followed by a steep power-law distribution (slope ≳3), similar to hydrodynamic jets. In the cocoon-only outcome, the dynamical ejecta broadens the outflow angular distribution and flattens it (slope ∼1.5).

Observational signatures of black hole accretion: rotating versus spherical flows with tilted magnetic fields

ABSTRACT We study the observational signatures of magnetically arrested black hole accretion with non-rotating inflow on to a rotating black hole; we consider a range of angles between the black hole spin and the initial magnetic field orientation. We compare the results of our general relativistic magneto-hydrodynamic simulations to more commonly used rotating initial conditions and to the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) observations of M87. We find that the mm intensity images, polarization images, and synchrotron emission spectra are very similar among the different simulations when post-processed with the same electron temperature model; observational differences due to different electron temperature models are significantly larger than those due to the different realizations of magnetically arrested accretion. The orientation of the mm synchrotron polarization is particularly insensitive to the initial magnetic field orientation, the electron temperature model, and the rotation of the inflowing plasma. The largest difference among the simulations with different initial rotation and magnetic tilt is in the strength and stability of the jet; spherical inflow leads to kink-unstable jets. We discuss the implications of our results for current and future EHT observations and for theoretical models of event-horizon-scale black hole accretion.

A simple analytical model of magnetic jets

ABSTRACT We propose a simple analytical jet model of magnetic jets, in which radially averaged profiles of main physical quantities are obtained based on conservation laws and some results of published general relativistic magnetohydrodynamic jet simulations. We take into account conversion of the magnetic energy flux to bulk acceleration in jets formed around rotating black holes assuming the mass continuity equation and constant jet power, which leads to the Bernoulli equation. For assumed profiles of the bulk Lorentz factor and the radius, this gives us the profile of the toroidal magnetic field component along the jet. We then consider the case where the poloidal field component is connected to a rotating black hole surrounded by an accretion disc. Our formalism then recovers the standard formula for the power extracted from a rotating black hole. We find that the poloidal field strength dominates over the toroidal one in the comoving frame up to large distances, which means that jets should be more stable to current-driven kink modes. The resulting magnetic field profiles can then be used to calculate the jet synchrotron emission.