Electromagnetic variability from circumbinary discs around binary black holes during their post-decoupling epoch

TL;DR

This study uses relativistic hydrodynamical simulations to explore electromagnetic signals from circumbinary discs around merging black holes, revealing persistent features that could aid in multi-messenger observations during the post-decoupling epoch.

Contribution

First detailed relativistic simulations of circumbinary discs during the post-decoupling phase, linking electromagnetic signatures to gravitational wave sources.

Findings

Lump and spiral wave structures persist until merger.

Electromagnetic modulation linked to the lump survives post-decoupling.

Potential UV EM signatures for LISA gravitational wave sources.

Abstract

We present general-relativistic hydrodynamical simulations of inviscid circumbinary discs (CBDs) around near equal-mass binary black holes (BBH) in the binary-disc post-decoupling epoch. We use an approximate BBH spacetime with a post-Newtonian inspiral motion trajectory from ${\sim}80 (M/10^7 \mathrm{M_\odot}) \, \mbox{days}$ (separation of ${\sim}\,30$ gravitational radii) to ${\sim}100 (M/10^7 \mathrm{M_\odot}) \, \mbox{minutes}$ before merger. Initial data for the inspiral runs are produced from circular-orbits runs covering the formation timescale of the overdense {\lq}lump{\rq}, orbiting the CBD inner edge. The CBD non-axisymmetries (spiral waves and lump) lead to non-negligible angular momentum transport with effective viscosity ${\alpha_\mathrm{eff} \, {\sim} \, 10^{{-3}}{- 2\times 10}^{-2}}$. We post-process these simulations with a general-relativistic ray-tracing code to obtain synthetic observations in thermal emission. We find the lump and its associated electromagnetic (EM) modulation, already reported in the pre-decoupling epoch, to survive post-decoupling up until the end of the simulation. For LISA sources, our findings point to an active EM signature in UV during optimal gravitational wave source localization. For PTA sources and current BBH candidates detected through their optical periodicity: the lump{ in a low-viscosity CBD is a possible, though not unique, origin} for the observed periodicity.