2014/05/31 by Philippe Grandclement, Claire Somé, Eric Gourgoulhon · 1 citation
Physics and Astronomy · #gr-qc
paper · pdf · doi:10.1103/physrevd.90.024068
published as Physical Review D 90 (2014) 024068
arxiv created 2014/07/19 · arxiv updated 2014/08/29
We have developed a highly accurate numerical code capable of solving the coupled Einstein-Klein-Gordon system, in order to construct rotating boson stars in general relativity. Free fields and self-interacting fields, with quartic and sextic potentials, are considered. In particular, we present the first numerical solutions of rotating boson stars with rotational quantum number k=3 and k=4, as well as the first determination of the maximum mass of free-field boson stars with k=2. We have also investigated timelike geodesics in the spacetime generated by a rotating boson star for k=1, 2 and 3. A numerical integration of the geodesic equation has enabled us to identify a peculiar type of orbits: the zero-angular-momentum ones. These orbits pass very close to the center and are qualitatively different from orbits around a Kerr black hole. Should such orbits be observed, they would put stringent constraints on astrophysical compact objects like the Galactic center.