Detecting the Birth of Supermassive Black Holes Formed from Heavy Seeds

2019/03/18 by Fabio Pacucci, Pacucci, Fabio, Vivienne Baldassare +25 · 2 citations
Physics and Astronomy · #Galaxies: Formation, Evolution, Phenomena #Black Holes and Theoretical Physics #Astrophysical Phenomena and Observations

paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.1903.07623

Abstract

In this white paper we explore the capabilities required to identify and study supermassive black holes formed from heavy seeds (\mathrmM_\bullet ∼ 10⁴ - 10⁶ \mathrmM_\odot) in the early Universe. To obtain an unequivocal detection of heavy seeds we need to probe mass scales of ∼ 10^5-6 \mathrmM_\odot at redshift z \gtrsim 10. From this theoretical perspective, we review the observational requirements and how they compare with planned/proposed instruments, in the infrared, X-ray and gravitational waves realms. In conclusion, detecting heavy black hole seeds at z \gtrsim 10 in the next decade will be challenging but, according to current theoretical models, feasible with upcoming/proposed facilities. Their detection will be fundamental to understand the early history of the Universe, as well as its evolution until now. Shedding light on the dawn of black holes will certainly be one of the key tasks that the astronomical community will focus on in the next decade.

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