Black hole binaries and light fields: Gravitational molecules

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates that light scalar fields can form stable, molecule-like quasibound states around black hole binaries, which are well described by quantum-mechanical models and confirmed through numerical simulations.

Contribution

It introduces the concept of gravitational molecules formed by light scalars around black hole binaries and validates their existence with numerical and perturbative methods.

Findings

Scalar fields condense into quasibound states around binaries

States are well described by nonrelativistic quantum mechanics

Numerical simulations confirm the formation of gravitational molecules

Abstract

We show that light scalars can form quasibound states around binaries. In the nonrelativistic regime, these states are formally described by the quantum-mechanical Schrodinger equation for a one-electron heteronuclear diatomic molecule. We performed extensive numerical simulations of scalar fields around black hole binaries showing that a scalar structure condenses around the binary -- we dub these states "gravitational molecules". We further show that these are well described by the perturbative, nonrelativistic description.