Primordial Black Hole clusters, phenomenology & implications

TL;DR

This paper uses N-body simulations to study the evolution, dynamics, and merger processes of primordial black hole clusters, providing insights into their potential observational signatures and implications for dark matter models.

Contribution

It presents the first detailed N-body simulation analysis of primordial black hole clusters with various initial mass distributions, including effects like gravitational radiation and merger kicks.

Findings

Clusters expand and evaporate over time.

Binary black hole mergers are common within clusters.

Merger kicks influence hierarchical merger probabilities.

Abstract

We present direct N-body simulations of black-hole-only clusters with up to $2 \cdot 10^4$ compact objects, zero natal spin and no primordial binaries as predicted by various primordial black hole (PBH) Dark Matter models. The clusters' evolution is computed using ${\tt NBODY6\!+\!+GPU}$, including the effects of the tidal field of the galaxy, the kicks of black hole mergers and orbit-averaged energy loss by gravitational radiation of binaries. We investigate clusters with four initial mass distributions, three of which attempt to model a generic PBH scenario using a lognormal mass distribution and a fourth one that can be directly linked to a monochromatic PBH scenario when accretion is considered. More specifically, we dive into the clusters' internal dynamics, describing their expansion and evaporation, along with the resultant binary black hole mergers. We also compare several simulations with and without black hole merger kicks and find modelling implications for the probability of hierarchical mergers.