Self-similar Evolution of Self-Gravitating Viscous Accretion Discs

TL;DR

This paper introduces a new one-dimensional model for self-gravitating viscous accretion discs, revealing self-similar evolution patterns and implications for black hole growth and quasar activity.

Contribution

It develops a simplified, single PDE model for self-gravitating discs and analyzes their similarity solutions, connecting initial conditions to long-term evolution.

Findings

Self-similar solutions depend on initial angular velocity profiles.

Inner regions become Keplerian regardless of initial conditions.

Flatter outer rotation laws lead to higher accretion rates.

Abstract

A new one-dimensional, dynamical model is proposed for geometrically thin, self-gravitating viscous accretion discs. The vertically integrated equations are simplified using the slow accretion limit and the monopole approximation with a time-dependent central point mass to account for self-gravity and accretion. It is shown that the system of partial differential equations can be reduced to a single non-linear advection diffusion equation which describes the time evolution of angular velocity. In order to solve the equation three different turbulent viscosity prescriptions are considered. It is shown that for these parametrizations the differential equation allows for similarity transformations depending only on a single non-dimensional parameter. A detailed analysis of the similarity solutions reveals that this parameter is the initial power law exponent of the angular velocity distribution at large radii. The radial dependence of the self-similar solutions is in most cases given by broken power laws. At small radii the rotation law always becomes Keplerian with respect to the current central point mass. In the outer regions the power law exponent of the rotation law deviates from the Keplerian value and approaches asymptotically the value determined by the initial condition. It is shown that accretion discs with flatter rotation laws at large radii yield higher accretion rates. The methods are applied to self-gravitating accretion discs in active galactic nuclei. Fully self-gravitating discs are found to evolve faster than nearly Keplerian discs. The implications on supermassive black hole formation and Quasar evolution are discussed.