Unveiling Gravitational Waves from Galactic Nuclei

ended

To date, the mechanisms that trigger the formation and gravitational wave (GW) coalescence of compact-object (CO, black holes, neutron stars, white dwarfs) binaries are still unknown. Two main formation scenarios have been proposed, primordial and dynamically-formed binaries, but both appear in tension with data. Galactic nuclei are a promising nursery for GW merger events, because of their high stellar density and the presence of a central massive black hole (MBH). Numerical simulations represent an ideal tool to model COs in galactic nuclei, but the current literature misses several key features which are needed to fully capture the complex physics involved. The GWnucleus project aims at filling this gap, by answering to the question: how do galactic nuclei shape the properties of gravitational waves (GW) sources? I will achieve this goal by developing an innovative hybrid Monte-Carlo/N-body model for simulating COs in galactic nuclei, at the Theoretical Astrophysics group of the Niels Bohr International Academy (NBIA), led by Prof. Martin Pessah. This novel framework will finally provide a complete understanding of GW progenitors' evolution in galactic nuclei, and establish a new theoretical model to interpret (present) and predict (forthcoming) GW observations.