2007/01/31 by Ryan M. O’Leary, Ryan O'Leary, Richard O'Shaughnessy +3 · 5 citations
Physics and Astronomy · #Astrophysical Phenomena and Observations #Gamma-ray bursts and supernovae #Pulsars and Gravitational Waves Research #astro-ph
paper · pdf · doi:10.1103/physrevd.76.061504
published as Phys.Rev.D76:061504,2007 · 4 pages, 2 figures. To appear in PRD Rapid Communications
arxiv created 2007/08/16 · openalex publication_date 2007/09/27 · arxiv updated 2009/12/01 · openalex created_date 2016/06/24 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
Binary black holes can form efficiently in dense young stellar clusters, such as the progenitors of globular clusters, via a combination of gravitational segregation and cluster evaporation. We use simple analytic arguments supported by detailed N-body simulations to determine how frequently black holes born in a single stellar cluster should form binaries, be ejected from the cluster, and merge through the emission of gravitational radiation. We then convolve this ``transfer function'' relating cluster formation to black-hole mergers with (i) the distribution of observed cluster masses and (ii) the star formation history of the Universe, assuming that a significant fraction gcl of star formation occurs in clusters and that a significant fraction gevap of clusters undergo this segregation and evaporation process. We predict future ground-based gravitational wave detectors could observe \ensuremath∼500(gcl/0.5)(gevap/0.1) double black-hole mergers per year, and the presently operating LIGO interferometer would have a chance (50%) at detecting a merger during its first full year of science data. More realistically, advanced LIGO and similar next-generation gravitational wave observatories provide unique opportunities to constrain otherwise inaccessible properties of clusters formed in the early Universe.