arXiv subjects

Eugen Radu

Publications and source records attributed to Eugen Radu.

At least 127 records · Page 7Linked to original sources

arXiv2017

Probing the universality of synchronised hair around rotating black holes with Q-clouds

Recently, various families of black holes (BHs) with synchronised hair have been constructed. These are rotating BHs surrounded, as fully non-linear solutions of the appropriate Einstein-matter model, by a non-trivial bosonic field in synchronised rotation with the BH horizon. Some families bifurcate globally from a bald BH ($e.g.$ the Kerr BH), whereas others bifurcate only locally from a bald BH ($e.g.$ the $D=5$ Myers-Perry BH). It would be desirable to understand how generically synchronisation allows hairy BHs to bifurcate from bald ones. However, the construction and scanning of the domain of existence of the former families of BHs can be a difficult and time consuming (numerical) task. Here, we first provide a simple perturbative argument to understand the generality of the synchronisation condition. Then, we observe that the study of Q-clouds is a generic tool to establish the existence of BHs with synchronised hair bifurcating (globally or locally) from a given bald BH without having to solve the fully non-linear coupled system of Einstein-matter equations. As examples, we apply this tool to establish the existence of synchronised hair around $D=6$ Myers-Perry BHs, $D=5$ black rings and $D=4$ Kerr-AdS BHs, where $D$ is the spacetime dimension. The black rings case provides an example of BHs with synchronised hair beyond spherical horizon topology, further establishing the generality of the mechanism.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2017

Skyrmions, Skyrme stars and black holes with Skyrme hair in five spacetime dimension

We consider a class of generalizations of the Skyrme model to five spacetime dimensions ($d=5$), which is defined in terms of an $O(5)$ sigma model. A special ansatz for the Skyrme field allows angular momentum to be present and equations of motion with a radial dependence only. Using it, we obtain: 1) everywhere regular solutions describing localised energy lumps (Skyrmions); 2) Self-gravitating, asymptotically flat, everywhere non-singular solitonic solutions (Skyrme stars), upon minimally coupling the model to Einstein's gravity; 3) both static and spinning black holes with Skyrme hair, the latter with rotation in two orthogonal planes, with both angular momenta of equal magnitude. In the absence of gravity we present an analytic solution that satisfies a BPS-type bound and explore numerically some of the non-BPS solutions. In the presence of gravity, we contrast the solutions to this model with solutions to a complex scalar field model, namely boson stars and black holes with synchronised hair. Remarkably, even though the two models present key differences, and in particular the Skyrme model allows static hairy black holes, when introducing rotation, the synchronisation condition becomes mandatory, providing further evidence for its generality in obtaining rotating hairy black holes.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2017

Einstein-Maxwell-Chern-Simons Black Holes

Black holes in 5-dimensional Einstein-Maxwell-Chern-Simons (EMCS) theory and their intriguing properties are discussed. For the special case of the CS coupling constant $λ=λ_{SG}$, as obtained from supergravity, a closed form solution is known for the rotating black holes. Beyond this supergravity value, the EMCS black hole solutions can e.g. exhibit nonuniqueness and form sequences of radially excited solutions. In the presence of a negative cosmological constant the black holes can possess an extra-parameter corresponding to a magnetic flux in addition to the mass, electric charge and angular momenta. This latter family of black holes possesses also a solitonic limit. Finally, a new class of squashed EMCS black hole solutions is discussed.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2017

Lensing and dynamics of ultra-compact bosonic stars

Spherically symmetric bosonic stars are one of the few examples of gravitating solitons that are known to form dynamically, via a classical process of (incomplete) gravitational collapse. As stationary solutions of the Einstein--Klein-Gordon or the Einstein--Proca theory, bosonic stars may also become sufficiently compact to develop light rings and hence mimic, in principle, gravitational-wave observational signatures of black holes (BHs). In this paper, we discuss how these horizonless ultra-compact objects (UCOs) are actually distinct from BHs, both phenomenologically and dynamically. In the electromagnetic channel, the light ring associated phenomenology reveals remarkable lensing patterns, quite distinct from a standard BH shadow, with an infinite number of Einstein rings accumulating in the vicinity of the light ring, both inside and outside the latter. The strong lensing region, moreover, can be considerably smaller than the shadow of a BH with a comparable mass. Dynamically, we investigate the fate of such UCOs under perturbations, via fully non-linear numerical simulations and observe that, in all cases, they decay into a Schwarzschild BH within a time scale of $\mathcal{O}(M)$, where $M$ is the mass of the bosonic star. Both these studies reinforce how difficult it is for horizonless UCOs to mimic BH phenomenology and dynamics, in all its aspects.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2017

Asymptotically flat scalar, Dirac and Proca stars: discrete vs. continuous families of solutions

The existence of localized, approximately stationary, lumps of the classical gravitational and electromagnetic field -- $geons$ -- was conjectured more than half a century ago. If one insists on exact stationarity, topologically trivial configurations in electro-vacuum are ruled out by no-go theorems for solitons. But stationary, asymptotically flat geons found a realization in scalar-vacuum, where everywhere non-singular, localized field lumps exist, known as (scalar) boson stars. Similar geons have subsequently been found in Einstein-Dirac theory and, more recently, in Einstein-Proca theory. We identify the common conditions that allow these solutions, which may also exist for other spin fields. Moreover, we present a comparison of spherically symmetric geons for the spin $0,1/2$ and $1$, emphasising the mathematical similarities and clarifying the physical differences, particularly between the bosonic and fermonic cases. We clarify that for the fermionic case, Pauli's exclusion principle prevents a continuous family of solutions for a fixed field mass; rather only a discrete set exists, in contrast with the bosonic case.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2017

Kerr black holes with synchronised hair: an analytic model and dynamical formation

East and Pretorius (arXiv:1704.04791) have successfully evolved, using fully non-linear numerical simulations, the superradiant instability of the Kerr black hole (BH) triggered by a massive, complex vector field. Evolutions terminate in stationary states of a vector field condensate synchronised with a rotating BH horizon. We show these end points are fundamental states of Kerr BHs with synchronised Proca hair. Motivated by the "experimental data" from these simulations we suggest a universal (i.e. field-spin independent), analytic model for the subset of BHs with sychronised hair that possess a quasi-Kerr horizon, applicable in the weak hair regime. Comparing this model with fully non-linear numerical solutions of BHs with synchronised scalar or Proca hair, we show the model is accurate for hairy BHs that may emerge dynamically from superradiance, whose domain we identify.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2017

Reissner-Nordström black holes with non-Abelian hair

We consider $d\geqslant 4$ Einstein--(extended-)Yang-Mills theory, where the gauge sector is augmented by higher order terms. Linearizing the (extended) Yang-Mills equations on the background of the electric Reissner-Nordström (RN) black hole, we show the existence of normalizable zero modes, dubbed non-Abelian magnetic stationary clouds. The non-linear realization of these clouds bifurcates the RN family into a branch of static, spherically symmetric, electrically charged and asymptotically flat black holes with non-Abelian hair. Generically, the hairy black holes are thermodynamically preferred over the RN solution, which, in this model, becomes unstable against the formation of non-Abelian hair, for sufficiently large values of the electric charge.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2017

Constraining Black Holes with Light Boson Hair and Boson Stars using Epicyclic Frequencies and QPOs

Light bosonic fields are ubiquitous in extensions of the Standard Model. Even when minimally coupled to gravity, these fields might evade the assumptions of the black-hole no-hair theorems and give rise to spinning black holes which can be drastically different from the Kerr metric. Furthermore, they allow for self-gravitating compact solitons, known as (scalar or Proca) boson stars. The quasi-periodic oscillations (QPOs) observed in the X-ray flux emitted by accreting compact objects carry information about the strong-field region, thus providing a powerful tool to constrain deviations from Kerr's geometry and to search for exotic compact objects. By using the relativistic precession model as a proxy to interpret the QPOs in terms of geodesic frequencies, we investigate how the QPO frequencies could be used to test the no-hair theorem and the existence of light bosonic fields near accreting compact objects. We show that a detection of two QPO triplets with current sensitivity can already constrain these models, and that the future eXTP mission or a LOFT-like mission can set very stringent constraints on black holes with bosonic hair and on (scalar or Proca) boson stars. The peculiar geodesic structure of compact scalar/Proca boson stars implies that these objects can easily be ruled out as alternative models for X-ray source GRO J1655-40.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2017

AdS$_5$ magnetized solutions in minimal gauged supergravity

We construct a generalization of the AdS charged rotating black holes with two equal magnitude angular momenta in five-dimensional minimal gauged supergravity. In addition to the mass, electric charge and angular momentum, the new solutions possess an extra-parameter associated with a non-zero magnitude of the magnetic potential at infinity. In contrast with the known cases, these new black holes possess a non-trivial zero-horizon size limit which describes a one parameter family of spinning charged solitons. All configurations reported in this work approach asymptotically an AdS$_5$ spacetime in global coordinates and are free of pathologies.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2017

Testing Einstein-dilaton-Gauss-Bonnet gravity from the reflection spectrum of accreting black holes

Einstein-dilaton-Gauss-Bonnet gravity is a theoretically well-motivated alternative theory of gravity emerging as a low-energy 4-dimensional model from heterotic string theory. Its rotating black hole solutions are known numerically and can have macroscopic deviations from the Kerr black holes of Einstein's gravity. Einstein-dilaton-Gauss-Bonnet gravity can thus be tested with observations of astrophysical black holes. In the present paper, we simulate observations of the reflection spectrum of thin accretion disks with present and future X-ray facilities to understand whether X-ray reflection spectroscopy can distinguish the black holes in Einstein-dilaton-Gauss-Bonnet gravity from those in Einstein's gravity. We find that this is definitively out of reach for present X-ray missions, but it may be achieved with the next generation of facilities.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2017

Iron K$α$ line of Kerr black holes with Proca hair

We continue our study on the capabilities of present and future X-ray missions to test the nature of astrophysical black hole candidates via X-ray reflection spectroscopy and distinguish Kerr black holes from other solutions of 4-dimensional Einstein's gravity in the presence of a matter field. Here we investigate the case of Kerr black holes with Proca hair [1]. The analysis of a sample of these configurations suggests that even extremely hairy black holes can mimic the iron line profile of the standard Kerr black holes, and, at least for the configurations of our study, we find that current X-ray missions cannot distinguish these objects from Kerr black holes. This contrasts with our previous findings for the case of Kerr black holes with scalar (rather than Proca) hair [2], even though such comparison may be biased by the limited sample. Future X-ray missions can detect the presence of Proca hair, but a theoretical knowledge of the expected intensity profile (currently missing) can be crucial to obtain strong constraints.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2017

Fundamental photon orbits: black hole shadows and spacetime instabilities

The standard Black Holes (BHs) in General Relativity, as well as other ultra-compact objects (with or without an event horizon) admit planar circular photon orbits. These light rings (LRs) determine several spacetime properties. For instance, stable LRs trigger instabilities and, in spherical symmetry, (unstable) LRs completely determine BH shadows. In generic stationary, axi-symmetric spacetimes, non-planar bound photon orbits may also exist, regardless of the integrability properties of the photon motion. We suggest a classification of these fundamental photon orbits (FPOs) and, using Poincaré maps, determine a criterion for their stability. For the Kerr BH, all FPOs are unstable (similarly to its LRs) and completely determine the Kerr shadow. But in non-Kerr spacetimes, stable FPOs may also exist, even when all LRs are unstable, triggering new instabilities. We illustrate this for the case of Kerr BHs with Proca hair, wherein, moreover, qualitatively novel shadows with a cuspy edge exist, a feature that can be understood from the interplay between stable and unstable FPOs. FPOs are the natural generalisation of LRs beyond spherical symmetry and should generalise the LRs key role in different spacetime properties.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2017

Charged rotating black holes in Einstein--Maxwell--Chern-Simons theory with a negative cosmological constant

We consider rotating black hole solutions in five-dimensional Einstein-Maxwell-Chern-Simons theory with a negative cosmological constant and a generic value of the Chern-Simons coupling constant $λ$. Using both analytical and numerical techniques, we focus on cohomogeneity-1 configurations, with two equal-magnitude angular momenta, which approach at infinity a globally AdS background. We find that the generic solutions share a number of basic properties with the known Cvetic, Lü and Pope black holes which have $λ=1$. New features occur as well, for example, when the Chern-Simons coupling constant exceeds a critical value, the solutions are no longer uniquely determined by their global charges. Moreover, the black holes possess radial excitations which can be labelled by the node number of the magnetic gauge potential function. Solutions with small values of $λ$ possess other distinct features. For instance, the extremal black holes there form two disconnected branches, while not all near-horizon solutions are associated with global solutions.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2017

Shadows of Einstein-dilaton-Gauss-Bonnet black holes

We study the shadows of the fully non-linear, asymptotically flat Einstein-dilaton-Gauss-Bonnet (EdGB) black holes (BHs), for both static and rotating solutions. We find that, in all cases, these shadows are smaller than for comparable Kerr BHs, i.e. with the same total mass and angular momentum under similar observation conditions. In order to compare both cases we provide quantitative shadow parameters, observing in particular that the differences in the shadows mean radii are never larger than the percent level. Therefore, generically, EdGB BHs cannot be excluded by (near future) shadow observations alone. On the theoretical side, we find no clear signature of some exotic features of EdGB BHs on the corresponding shadows, such as the regions of negative (Komar, say) energy density outside the horizon. We speculate that this is due to the fact that the Komar energy interior to the light rings (or more precisely, the surfaces of constant radial coordinate that intersect the light rings in the equatorial plane) is always smaller than the ADM mass, and consequently the corresponding shadows are smaller than those of comparable Kerr BHs. The analysis herein provides a clear example that it is the light ring impact parameter, rather than its "size", that determines a BH shadow.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2017

Numerical evolutions of spherical Proca stars

Vector boson stars, or $\textit{Proca stars}$, have been recently obtained as fully non-linear numerical solutions of the Einstein-(complex)-Proca system. These are self-gravitating, everywhere non-singular, horizonless Bose-Einstein condensates of a massive vector field, which resemble in many ways, but not all, their scalar cousins, the well-known (scalar) $\textit{boson stars}$. In this paper we report fully-non linear numerical evolutions of Proca stars, focusing on the spherically symmetric case, with the goal of assessing their stability and the end-point of the evolution of the unstable stars. Previous results from linear perturbation theory indicate the separation between stable and unstable configurations occurs at the solution with maximal ADM mass. Our simulations confirm this result. Evolving numerically unstable solutions, we find, depending on the sign of the binding energy of the solution and on the perturbation, three different outcomes: $(i)$ migration to the stable branch, $(ii)$ total dispersion of the scalar field, or $(iii)$ collapse to a Schwarzschild black hole. In the latter case, a long lived Proca field remnant -- a $\textit{Proca wig}$ -- composed by quasi-bound states, may be seen outside the horizon after its formation, with a life-time that scales inversely with the Proca mass. We comment on the similarities/differences with the scalar case as well as with neutron stars.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2017

Iron K$α$ line of Proca stars

X-ray reflection spectroscopy can be a powerful tool to test the nature of astrophysical black holes. Extending previous work on Kerr black holes with scalar hair [1] and on boson stars [2], here we study whether astrophysical black hole candidates may be horizonless, self-gravitating, vector Bose-Einstein condensates, known as Proca stars [3]. We find that observations with current X-ray missions can only provide weak constraints and rule out solely Proca stars with low compactness. There are two reasons. First, at the moment we do not know the geometry of the corona, and therefore the uncertainty in the emissivity profile limits the ability to constrain the background metric. Second, the photon number count is low even in the case of a bright black hole binary, and we cannot have a precise measurement of the spectrum.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2016

The effect of Chern-Simons dynamics on the energy of electrically charged and spinning vortices

We study the effect of a Chern-Simons term on the electrically charged and spinning solitons of several $U(1)$ gauged models in $2+1$ dimensions. These are vortices of complex scalar field theories, both with and without symmetry breaking dynamics, and the $O(3)$ Skyrme model. In all cases the gauge decoupling limits are also considered. It is well known that the effect of the Chern-Simons dynamics is to endow vortices with electric charge $Q_e$ and spin $J$, but our main aim here is to reveal a new feature: that the mass-energy $E$ of the electrically charged vortex can be lower than that of the electrically neutral one, in contrast to the usual monotonic increase of $E$ with $Q_e$. These effects of Chern-Simons dynamics were observed previously in $3+1$ dimensional systems, and the present results can be viewed as corroborating the latter. Moreover, the usual energy-spin relationship is likewise altered. We carry out a detailed quantitative analysis of azimuthally symmetric vortices and describe their qualitative features by constructing the solutions numerically.

hep-th↗

arXiv2016

Static Einstein-Maxwell Magnetic Solitons and Black Holes in an Odd Dimensional AdS Spacetime

We construct a new class of Einstein-Maxwell static solutions with a magnetic field in $D$-dimensions (with $D\geq 5$ an odd number), approaching at infinity a globally Anti-de Sitter (AdS) spacetime. In addition to the mass, the new solutions possess an extra-parameter associated with a non-zero magnitude of the magnetic potential at infinity. Some of the black holes possess a non-trivial zero-horizon size limit, which corresponds to a solitonic deformation of the AdS background.

gr-qc↗