Null Circular Orbits Research Articles

Influence of plasma on the optical appearance of spinning black hole in Kalb-Ramond gravity and its Existence around M87* and Sgr A*

The visible universe is filled with different types of plasma media in the form of stars, nebulas and other forms of excited gases. These matter fields have a high influence on the gravity and are likely to be present around the black holes due to the immense gravitational attraction. Since a plasma medium affects the speed of light, therefore we investigated the null geodesics and various optical features around the rotating black hole in Kalb-Ramond gravity immersed in plasma medium. Various plasma distributions are considered to develop a comparative study for their influence on unstable null circular orbits, shadows and evaporation rate of the black hole in the presence of a plasma medium. Moreover, the shadow results are also compared with Event Horizon Telescope data for M78* and Sgr A* in order to estimate the parametric bounds for which the rotating black hole in Kalb-Ramond gravity is considered either M87* or Sgr A* under the different values of plasma parameters. From this analysis, we also found the distribution of plasma that has a significant impact on the above mentioned features and is most likely to be present around M87* and Sgr A*.

The null circular geodesic outside the spherically symmetric asymptotically flat hairy black hole is not stable

In this study, we explicitly prove that the null circular orbit outside the spherically symmetric asymptotically flat hairy black hole is not stable. Although, if there is more than one external light ring at least one of them is stable. The existence of such geodesics has been proved in the recent work of Hod as well as Peng whereas its stability was left uncommented.

No long hair behaviors of ultra-compact objects

We investigate distributions of matter fields outside spherically symmetric ultra-compact objects with null circular orbits in the asymptotically flat background. Based on the dominant energy and the non-negative trace conditions, we prove the existence of effective radius of matter field hairs outside horizonless ultra-compact objects. We also analytically find a no long hair behavior, which states that the effective radius of matter field hairs cannot extend beyond the outermost null circular orbit of horizonless ultra-compact objects.

Topology of equatorial timelike circular orbits around stationary black holes

A topological approach has been successfully used to study the properties of the light ring and the null circular orbit, in a generic black hole background. However, for the equatorial timelike circular orbit, quite different from the light ring case, its radius is closely dependent of the energy and angular momentum of a test particle. This fact seems to restrict the extension of the topological treatment to the timelike circular orbit. In this paper, we confirm that the angular momentum does not affect the asymptotic behavior of the constructed vector with its zero points denoting the equatorial timelike circular orbits. As a result, a well-behaved topology to characterize the equatorial timelike circular orbits can be constructed. Our study shows that the total topological number of the timelike circular orbits vanishes for a generic black hole, which is dependent of the energy of the particle. Significantly, it reveals that if there the timelike circular orbits exist, they always come in pairs for fixed angular momentum. Meanwhile, the stable and unstable timelike circular orbits have positive or negative winding number. Of particular interest is that the marginally stable circular orbit corresponds to the bifurcation point of the zero point of the constructed vector. Moreover, we also examine the case when the particle energy acts as the control parameter. It is shown that there will be topological phase transition when the value of the particle energy is one. Below this value, the timelike circular orbits always come in pairs for fixed energy. Otherwise, we will have one more unstable timelike circular orbit. We further apply the treatment to the Kerr black hole. All the results given in a generic black hole background are exactly reproduced. These strongly indicate that our topological approach can be generalized to the equatorial timelike circular orbits.

Null and timelike circular orbits from equivalent 2D metrics

The motion of particles on spherical dimensional spacetimes can, under some assumptions, be described by the curves on a two-dimensional manifold, the optical and Jacobi manifolds for null and timelike curves, respectively. In this paper we resort to auxiliary two-dimensional metrics to study circular geodesics of generic static, spherically symmetric, and asymptotically flat dimensional spacetimes, whose functions are at least C 2 smooth. This is done by studying the Gaussian curvature of the bidimensional equivalent manifold as well as the geodesic curvature of circular paths on these. This study considers both null and timelike circular geodesics. The study of null geodesics through the optical manifold retrieves the known result of the number of light rings on the spacetime outside a black hole and on spacetimes with horizonless compact objects. With an equivalent procedure we can formulate a similar theorem on the number of marginally stable timelike circular orbits of a given spacetime satisfying the previously mentioned assumptions.

Extreme ℓ-boson stars

Abstract A new class of complex scalar field objects, which generalize the well known boson stars, was recently found as solutions to the Einstein–Klein–Gordon system. The generalization consists in incorporating some of the effects of angular momentum, while still maintaining the spacetime’s spherical symmetry. These new solutions depend on an (integer) angular parameter ℓ, and hence were named ℓ-boson stars. Like the standard ℓ = 0 boson stars these configurations admit a stable branch in the solution space; however, contrary to them they have a morphology that presents a shell-like structure with a ‘hole’ in the internal region. In this article we perform a thorough exploration of the parameter space, concentrating particularly on the extreme cases with large values of ℓ. We show that the shells grow in size with the angular parameter, doing so linearly for large values, with the size growing faster than the thickness. Their mass also increases with ℓ, but in such a way that their compactness, while also growing monotonically, converges to a finite value corresponding to about one half of the Buchdahl limit for stable configurations. Furthermore, we show that ℓ-boson stars can be highly anisotropic, with the radial pressure diminishing relative to the tangential pressure for large ℓ, reducing asymptotically to zero, and with the maximum density also approaching zero. We show that these properties can be understood by analyzing the asymptotic limit ℓ → ∞ of the field equations and their solutions. We also analyze the existence and characteristics of both timelike and null circular orbits, especially for very compact solutions.

Geodesic stability and quasinormal modes of non-commutative Schwarzschild black hole employing Lyapunov exponent

We study the dynamics of test particle and stability of circular geodesics in the gravitational field of a non-commutative geometry-inspired Schwarzschild black hole spacetime. The coordinate time Lyapunov exponent ( $$\lambda _{c}$$ ) is crucial to investigate the stability of equatorial circular geodesics of massive and massless test particles. The stability or instability of circular orbits is discussed by analyzing the variation of Lyapunov exponent with radius of these orbits for different values of non-commutative parameter ( $$\alpha $$ ). In the case of null circular orbits, the instability exponent is calculated and presented to discuss the instability of null circular orbits. Further, by relating parameters corresponding to null circular geodesics (i.e., angular frequency and Lyapunov exponent), the quasinormal modes for a massless scalar field perturbation in the eikonal approximation are evaluated and also visualized by relating the real and imaginary parts. The nature of scalar field potential, by varying the non-commutative parameter ( $$\alpha $$ ) and angular momentum of perturbation (l), is also observed and discussed.

Relevant scales for theC-metric with a positive cosmological constant

In this work, we study the weak and strong gravitational lensing in the presence of an accelerating black hole in a universe with a positive cosmological constant $\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Lambda}}$. First of all we derive new perturbative formulas for the event and cosmological horizons in terms of the Schwarzschild, cosmological and acceleration scales. In agreement with previous results in the literature, we find that null circular orbits for certain families of orbital cones originating from a saddle point of the effective potential are allowed and they do not exhibit any dependence on the cosmological constant. They turn out to be Jacobi unstable. We also show that it is impossible to distinguish a $C$-black hole from a $C$-black hole with $\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Lambda}}$ if we limit our probe only into effects associated to the Sachs optical scalars. This motivates us to analyze the weak and strong gravitational lensing when both the observer and the light ray belong to the aforementioned family of invariant cones. In particular, we derive analytical formulas for the deflection angle in the weak and strong gravitational lensing regimes.

Light-ring pairs from A -discriminantal varieties

When geodesic equations are formulated in terms of an effective potential $\mathcal{U}$, circular orbits are characterized by $\mathcal{U}={\ensuremath{\partial}}_{a}\mathcal{U}=0$. In this paper, we consider the case where $\mathcal{U}$ is an algebraic function. Then, the condition for circular orbits defines an $A$-discriminantal variety. A theorem by Rojas and Rusek, suitably interpreted in the context of effective potentials, gives a precise criteria for certain types of spacetimes to contain at most two branches of light rings (null circular orbits), where one is stable and the other one unstable. We identify a few classes of static, spherically symmetric spacetimes for which these two branches occur.

Stability analysis of circular orbits around a charged BTZ black hole spacetime in a nonlinear electrodynamics model via Lyapunov exponents

We investigate the existence and stability of both the timelike and null circular orbits for a (2 + 1)-dimensional charged BTZ black hole in Einstein-nonlinear Maxwell gravity with a negative cosmological constant. The stability analysis of orbits is performed to study the possibility of chaos in geodesic motion for a special case of black hole so-called conformally invariant Maxwell spacetime. The computations of both proper time Lyapunov exponent [Formula: see text] and coordinate time Lyapunov exponent [Formula: see text] are useful to determine the stability of these circular orbits. We observe the behavior of the ratio [Formula: see text] as a function of radius of circular orbits for the timelike case in view of different values of charge parameter. However, for the null case, we calculate only the coordinate time Lyapunov exponent [Formula: see text] as there is no proper time for massless test particles. More specifically, we further analyze the behavior of the ratio of [Formula: see text] to angular frequency [Formula: see text], so-called instability exponent as a function of charge [Formula: see text] and parameter related to cosmological constant [Formula: see text] for the particular values of other parameters.

Radial and circular motion of photons and test particles in the Schwarzschild black hole with quintessence and string clouds

The null and timelike geodesic motion in the vicinity of the Schwarzschild black hole in the presence of the string cloud parameter a and the quintessence field parameter q is studied. The ranges for both the parameters a and q are determined, which allow the existence of the black hole. In the radial motion of photon, the coordinate time t first decreases with the increasing values of both the parameters a and q and then in the close proximity of the horizon of the black hole, there is a turning point, after which the effect of the quintessence field is just opposite on the time t. For the massive particles, the proper time tau decreases with increasing values of the parameter a and increases with increase in the value of the parameter q. In the same case of the massive particles, the coordinate time t decreases with increase in the values of both the parameters a and q. Further, it is found that for test particles, the stable circular orbits exist in this spacetime for small values of both the parameters i.e., for 0<all 1 and 0<qll 1. It is observed that the radii of the null circular orbits increase as the values of the parameters a and q increase. While in the case of the timelike geodesics, the radii of the circular orbits increase as the value of the parameter a increases, and they decrease as the value of the parameter q increases.

No short hair behaviors of ultra-compact stars

In the black hole spacetime, a no short hair theorem was proved, which states that the effective radius of black hole hairs must extend beyond the null circular orbit. In the present paper, in the horizonless gravity, we find a similar no short hair behavior that the effective radius of matter fields must also extend beyond the null circular orbit of ultra-compact stars. We should emphasize that the theorem presented in this manuscript is valid only for spatially regular matter configurations whose energy-momentum traces are non-negative.

Photon surfaces in less symmetric spacetimes

We investigate photon surfaces and their stability in a less symmetric spacetime, a general static warped product with a warping function acting on a Riemannian submanifold of codimension two. We find a one-dimensional pseudopotential that gives photon surfaces as its extrema regardless of the spatial symmetry of the submanifold. The maxima and minima correspond to unstable and stable photon surfaces, respectively. It is analogous to the potential giving null circular orbits in a spherically symmetric spacetime. We also see that photon surfaces indeed exist for the spacetimes which are solutions to the Einstein equation. The parameter values for which the photon surfaces exist are specified. As we show finally, the pseudopotential arises due to the separability of the null geodesic equation, and the separability comes from the existence of a Killing tensor in the spacetime. The result leads to the conclusion that photon surfaces may exist even in a less symmetric spacetime if the spacetime admits a Killing tensor.

Dynamics of charged and rotating NUT black holes in Rastall gravity

In this work, the Kerr–Newman-NUT black hole solution in Rastall gravity is proposed and it turns out that the horizon is [Formula: see text] dependence. Black hole dynamics such as the event horizons, ergosurface, zero angular momentum observer (ZAMO), thermodynamic properties, and the equatorial circular orbit around the black hole such as static radius limit, null equatorial circular orbit, and innermost stable circular orbit are investigated in this work. How the NUT and Rastall parameter affect the dynamic of the black hole is also shown.

Probing Palatini-type gravity theories through gravitational wave detections via quasinormal modes

The possibility of testing gravity theories with the help of gravitational wave detections has become an interesting arena of recent research. In this paper, we follow this direction by investigating the quasinormal modes (QNMs) of the axial perturbations for charged black holes in the Palatini-type theories of gravity, specifically (1) the Palatini f(R) gravity coupled with Born-Infeld nonlinear electrodynamics and (2) the Eddington-inspired-Born-Infeld gravity (EiBI) coupled with Maxwell electromagnetic fields. The coupled master equations describing perturbations of charged black holes in these theories are obtained with the tetrad formalism. By using the Wentzel-Kramers-Brillouin (WKB) method up to 6th order, we calculate the QNM frequencies of the EiBI charged black holes, the Einstein-Born-Infeld black holes, and the Born-Infeld charged black holes within the Palatini R+alpha R^2 gravity. The QNM spectra of these black holes would deviate from those of the Reissner-Nordström black hole. In addition, we study the QNMs in the eikonal limit and find that for the axial perturbations of the EiBI charged black holes, the link between the eikonal QNMs and the unstable null circular orbit around the black hole is violated.

Existence and stability of circular orbits in static and axisymmetric spacetimes

The existence and stability of timelike and null circular orbits (COs) in the equatorial plane of general static and axisymmetric (SAS) spacetime are investigated in this work. Using the fixed point approach, we first obtained a necessary and sufficient condition for the non-existence of timelike COs. It is then proven that there will always exist timelike COs at large $\rho$ in an asymptotically flat SAS spacetime with a positive ADM mass and moreover, these timelike COs are stable. Some other sufficient conditions on the stability of timelike COs are also solved. We then found the necessary and sufficient condition on the existence of null COs. It is generally shown that the existence of timelike COs in SAS spacetime does not imply the existence of null COs, and vice-versa, regardless whether the spacetime is asymptotically flat or the ADM mass is positive or not. These results are then used to show the existence of timelike COs and their stability in an SAS Einstein-Yang-Mills-Dilaton spacetimes whose metric is not completely known. We also used the theorems to deduce the existence of timelike and null COs in some known SAS spacetimes.

Existence and stability of circular orbits in general static and spherically symmetric spacetimes

The existence and stability of circular orbits (CO) in static and spherically symmetric (SSS) spacetime are important because of their practical and potential usefulness. In this paper, using the fixed point method, we first prove a necessary and sufficient condition on the metric function for the existence of timelike COs in SSS spacetimes. After analyzing the asymptotic behavior of the metric, we then show that asymptotic flat SSS spacetime that corresponds to a negative Newtonian potential at large $r$ will always allow the existence of CO. The stability of the CO in a general SSS spacetime is then studied using the Lyapunov exponent method. Two sufficient conditions on the (in)stability of the COs are obtained. For null geodesics, a sufficient condition on the metric function for the (in)stability of null CO is also obtained. We then illustrate one powerful application of these results by showing that an SU(2) Yang-Mills-Einstein SSS spacetime whose metric function is not known, will allow the existence of timelike COs. We also used our results to assert the existence and (in)stabilities of a number of known SSS metrics.

Waves and null congruences in a draining bathtub

We study wave propagation in a draining bathtub: a black hole analogue in fluid mechanics whose perturbations are governed by a Klein–Gordon equation on an effective Lorentzian geometry. Like the Kerr spacetime, the draining bathtub geometry possesses an (effective) horizon, an ergosphere and null circular orbits. We propose here that a ‘pulse’ disturbance may be used to map out the light-cone of the effective geometry. First, we apply the eikonal approximation to elucidate the link between wavefronts, null geodesic congruences and the Raychaudhuri equation. Next, we solve the wave equation numerically in the time domain using the method of lines. Starting with Gaussian initial data, we demonstrate that a pulse will propagate along a null congruence and thus trace out the light-cone of the effective geometry. Our new results reveal features, such as wavefront intersections, frame-dragging, winding and interference effects, that are closely associated with the presence of null circular orbits and the ergosphere.

Geodesic motion in equal angular momenta Myers-Perry-AdS spacetimes

We study the geodesic motion of massive and massless test particles in the background of equally spinning Myers-Perry-anti-de Sitter (AdS) black holes in five dimensions. By adopting a coordinate system that makes manifest the cohomogeneity-1 property of these spacetimes, the equations of motion simplify considerably. This allows us to easily separate the radial motion from the angular part and to obtain solutions for angular trajectories in a compact closed form. For the radial motion we focus our attention on spherical orbits. In particular, we determine the timelike innermost stable circular orbits (ISCOs) for these asymptotically AdS spacetimes, as well as the location of null circular orbits. We find that the ISCO dives below the ergosurface for black holes rotating close to extremality and merges with the event horizon exactly at extremality, in analogy with the four-dimensional Kerr case. For sufficiently massive black holes in AdS there exists a spin parameter range in which the background spacetime is stable against superradiance and the ISCO lies inside the ergoregion. Our results for massless geodesics show that there are no stable circular null orbits outside the horizon, but there exist such orbits inside the horizon, as well as around over-extremal spacetimes, i.e., naked singularities. We also discuss how these orbits deform from the static to the rotating case.

Lyapunov exponent and charged Myers–Perry spacetimes

We compute the proper time Lyapunov exponent for charged Myers Perry black hole spacetime and investigate the instability of the equatorial circular geodesics (both timelike and null) via this exponent. We also show that for more than four spacetime dimensions $(N \geq 3)$, there are \emph{no} Innermost Stable Circular Orbits (ISCOs) in charged Myers Perry black hole spacetime. We further show that among all possible circular orbits, timelike circular orbits have \emph{longer} orbital periods than null circular orbits (photon spheres) as measured by asymptotic observers. Thus, timelike circular orbits provide the \emph{slowest way} to orbit around the charged Myers Perry black hole.