Wang et al. (2006) estimated an average radiative efficiency of 30% -- 35% for quasars at moderate redshift. We find that their method is not independent of quasar lifetimes and thus that quasars do not necessarily have such high efficiencies. Nonetheless, it is possible to derive interrelated constraints on quasar lifetimes, Eddington ratios, and radiative efficiencies of supermassive black holes. We derive such constraints using a statistically complete sample of quasars with black hole mass estimates from broad Mg II, made both with and without the radiation pressure correction of Marconi et al. (2008). We conclude that for quasars with L/LEdd > 0.02, lifetimes can range from 140 to 750 Myr for Schwarzschild black holes. Coupled with observed black hole masses, quasar lifetimes of < 140 Myr would imply that radiatively inefficient accretion or BH mergers must be important in the accretion history of quasars. Given reasonable assumptions about the quasar population, if the average quasar lifetime is < 1 Gyr, and if radiatively inefficient accretion is unimportant, then not many BHs with Eddington ratio < 0.2 can be rapidly spinning.
It has long been believed that accretion onto supermassive black holes powers quasars, but there has been relatively few observational constraints on the spins of the black holes. We address this problem by estimating the average radiative efficiencies of a large sample of quasars selected from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey, by combining their luminosity function and their black hole mass function. Over the redshift interval $0.4<z<2.1$, we find that quasars have average radiative efficiencies of $\sim 30% - 35%$, strongly suggesting that their black holes are rotating very fast, with specific …
We consider hot accretion onto a rapidly spinning neutron star (or any other compact object with a surface). A radiative hot settling flow has been discovered at low accretion rates in the early work by Medvedev & Narayan (2001) and analytical solution has been presented. It was shown later that this flow can match external medium smoothly, thus enforcing its physical feasibility. Here we complete the study of the global structure of such hot accretion by presenting the analytical solution for the boundary later, which forms between the bulk of the flow and the stellar surface. We confirm our …
The gravitational-wave spectrum emitted by a non-axisymmetric torus rotating at an angular velocity $Ω_T$, is derived in terms of a structure function representing a combination of sausage-tilt modes in the torus in the limit of an incompressible fluid. The analysis of the gravitational-wave spectrum is then applied to a model proposed recently, in which a highly magnetized torus interacts with a stellar mass, Kerr black hole via poloidal field lines that connect the torus and the horizon. The deformation of the torus results from global magnetic instabilities when the magnetic field strength …
The power of jets from black holes are expected to depend on both the spin of the black hole and the structure of the accretion disk in the region of the last stable orbit. We investigate these dependencies using two different physical models for the jet power: the classical Blandford-Znajek (BZ) model and a hybrid model developed by Meier. In the BZ case, the jets are powered by magnetic fields directly threading the spinning black hole while in the hybrid model, the jet energy is extracted from both the accretion disk as well as the black hole via magnetic fields anchored to the accretion fl…
Millisecond period brightness oscillations during the intensity rise of thermonuclear X-ray bursts are likely caused by an azimuthally asymmetric, expanding burning region on the stellar surface. The time evolution of the oscillation amplitude during the intensity rise encodes information on how the thermonuclear flames spread across the stellar surface. This process depends on properties of the accreted burning layer, surface fluid motions, and the surface magnetic field structure, and thus can provide insight into these stellar properties. We present two examples of bursts from different sou…
Recently, Allen et al. measured a tight correlation between the Bondi accretion rates and jet powers of the nuclei of nearby X-ray luminous elliptical galaxies. We employ two models of jet powering to understand the above correlation and derive constraints on the spin and accretion rate of the central black holes. The first is the Blandford-Znajek model, in which the spin energy of the hole is extracted as jet power; the second model is an hybrid version of the Blandford-Payne and Blandford-Znajek processes, in which the outflow is generated in the inner parts of the accretion disk. We assume …
Mergers of spinning black holes can give recoil velocities from gravitational radiation up to several thousand km/s. A recoiling supermassive black hole in an AGN can retain the inner part of its accretion disk, providing fuel for continuing AGN activity. Using AGN in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) that show velocity shifts of the broad emission lines relative to the narrow lines, we place upper limits on the incidence of high velocity recoils in AGN. Brief but powerful flares in soft X-rays may occur when bound material falls back into the moving accretion disk.
The comparison of the black hole mass function (BHMF) of active galactic nuclei (AGN) relics with the measured mass function of the massive black holes in galaxies provides strong evidence for the growth of massive black holes being dominated by mass accretion. We derive the Eddington ratio distributions as functions of black hole mass and redshift from a large AGN sample with measured Eddington ratios given by Kollmeier et al. We find that, even at the low mass end, most black holes are accreting at Eddington ratio ~0.2, which implies that the objects accreting at extremely high rates should …
We present the first tentative detection of spinning dust emission from specific astronomical sources. All other detections in the current literature are statistical. The Green Bank 140 foot telescope was used to observe 10 dust clouds at 5, 8, and 10 GHz. In some cases, the observed emission was consistent with the negative spectral slope expected for free-free emission (thermal bremsstrahlung), but in two cases it was not. One HII region yields a rising spectrum, inconsistent with free-free or synchrotron emission at the 10 sigma level. One dark cloud (L 1622) has a similar spectrum with low…
Powering the 10^62 erg nuclear outburst in the MS0735.6+7421 cluster central galaxy by accretion implies that its supermassive black hole (SMBH) grew by ~6x10^8 solar masses over the past 100 Myr. We place upper limits on the amount of cold gas and star formation near the nucleus of <10^9 solar masses and <2 solar masses per year, respectively. These limits imply that an implausibly large fraction of the preexisting cold gas in the bulge must have been consumed by its SMBH at the rate of ~3-5 solar masses per year while leaving no trace of star formation. Such a high accretion rate would be di…
(Abridged) A new type of self-similar hot viscous radiative accretion flow onto a rapidly spinning neutron star has recently been discovered. This ``hot brake'' flow forms in the two-temperature zone (close to a central object), but at a sufficiently low accretion rate and a high spin it may extend in the radial direction beyond ~300 Schwarzchild radii into a one-temperature zone. When the spin of the star is small enough, the flow transforms smoothly to an advection-dominated accretion flow. All gas parameters (density, angular velocity, temperature, luminosity, angular momentum flux) except …
We use the integrated spectrum of the X-ray background and quasars Spectral Energy Distribution to derive the contribution of quasars to the energy output of the Universe. We find a lower limit for the energy from accretion onto black holes of 6%, of the total luminosity of the Universe and probably more, with 15% quite possible. Comparing these values with the masses of black holes in the center of nearby galaxies we show that the accretion process must be on average very efficient: at least 15% of the accreted mass must be transformed into radiated energy. This further implies that most supe…
Most quasars are known to be radio quiet and according to the ``spin paradigm'', which connects their radio-loudness with the value of the black hole spin, they must harbor very slowly rotating black holes. On the other hand, quasars are powered by accretion which tends to increase the spin of the black hole. We show that the Blandford-Znajek mechanism is not efficient enough to counteract the spinning up of black holes by an accretion disk, regardless of the accretion rate. We establish conditions under which it is possible to obtain low values of the black hole spin, in the scenario involvin…
We present simultaneous Chandra-HETG and RXTE observations of a moderate flux `soft state' of the black hole candidate 4U1957+11. These spectra, having a minimally discernible hard X-ray excess, are an excellent test of modern disk atmosphere models that include the effects of black hole spin. The HETG data show that the soft disk spectrum is only very mildly absorbed with N_H =1-2 X 10^{21} cm^-2. These data additionally reveal 13.449 A NeIX absorption consistent with the warm/hot phase of the interstellar medium. The fitted disk model implies a highly inclined disk around a low mass black ho…
Mergers of spinning black holes can give recoil velocities from gravitational radiation up to several thousand km/s. A recoiling supermassive black hole in an AGN retains the inner part of its accretion disk. Marginally bound material rejoining the disk around the moving black hole releases a large amount of energy in shocks in a short time, leading to a flare in thermal soft X-rays with a luminosity approaching the Eddington limit. Reprocessing of the X-rays by the infalling material gives strong optical and ultraviolet emission lines with a distinctive spectrum. Despite the short lifetime of…
Binary systems of massive black holes will be detectable by the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) throughout the entire Universe. Observations of gravitational waves from this class of sources will have important repercussions on our understanding of the behaviour of gravity in the highly non-linear relativistic regime, the distribution and interaction of massive black holes at high redshift and the formation and evolution of cosmic structures. It is therefore important to address how accurately LISA can measure the source parameters and explore the implications for astronomy and cosmo…
Observations of jets from quasars and other types of accreting black hole are briefly summarized. The importance of beaming and $γ$-ray observations for understanding the origin of these jets is emphasised. It is argued that both the power source and the collimation are likely to be magnetic in origin, although the details remain controversial. Ultrarelativistic jets may be formed by the spinning hole and collimated by a hydromagnetic disc wind. Progress in understanding jets has been handicapped by our inadequate knowledge of how magnetic field really behaves under cosmic conditions. Fortunat…
(Abridged) Based on numerical simulations of galaxy mergers that incorporate black hole (BH) growth, we predict the faint end slope of the quasar luminosity function (QLF) and its evolution with redshift. Our simulations have yielded a new model for quasar lifetimes where the lifetime depends on both the instantaneous and peak quasar luminosities. This motivates a new interpretation of the QLF in which the bright end consists of quasars radiating at nearly their peak luminosities, but the faint end is mostly made up of quasars in less luminous phases of evolution. The faint-end QLF slope is th…
Recent X-ray spectroscopy made with ASCA have shown broad, skewed iron line emission from Seyfert-1 galaxies. The large extent of the red tail allows probing of the innermost regions of the black hole's accretion disc. A model of line emission has been developed and very strong evidence for the presence of a rapidly rotating Kerr black hole has been established in the case of MCG--6-30-15. Issues related to the observed line equivalent width and the position/geometry of the primary source are discussed. Both the continuum and the reflected iron line are computed, in a consistent manner, for a …
Considerations of the collision losses for protons traversing the 2.7 K black body microwave radiation field have led to the conclusion that the highest energy cosmic rays, those observed at $\geq 10^{20}$ eV, must come from sources within the present epoch. In light of this constraint, it is here suggested that these particles may be accelerated near the event horizons of spinning supermassive black holes associated with presently inactive quasar remnants. The required emf is generated by the black hole induced rotation of externally supplied magnetic field lines threading the horizon. Produc…
We present results of axisymmetic magnetohydrodynamic simulations of the interaction of a rapidly-rotating, magnetized star with an accretion disk. The disk is considered to have a finite viscosity and magnetic diffusivity. The main parameters of the system are the star's angular velocity and magnetic moment, and the disk's viscosity, diffusivity. We focus on the "propeller" regime where the inner radius of the disk is larger than the corotation radius. Two types of magnetohydrodynamic flows have been found as a result of simulations: "weak" and "strong" propellers. The strong propeller is cha…
We have derived the quasar luminosity function assuming that the quasar activity is driven by a thermal-viscous unstable accretion disk around a supermassive black hole. The instabilities produce large amplitude, long-term variability of a single source. We take a light curve of a single source and calculate the luminosity function, from the function of time it spends at each luminosity. Convolving this with an assumed mass distribution we fit well the observed optical luminosity function of quasars at four redshifts. As a result we obtain the evolution of the mass distribution between redshif…
Binary systems of rapidly spinning compact objects, such as black holes or neutron stars, are prime targets for gravitational wave astronomers. The dynamics of these systems can be very complicated due to spin-orbit and spin-spin couplings. Contradictory results have been presented as to the nature of the dynamics. Here we confirm that the dynamics - as described by the second post-Newtonian approximation to general relativity - is chaotic, despite claims to the contrary. When dissipation due to higher order radiation reaction terms are included, the chaos is dampened. However, the inspiral-to…
We present computed spectra, as seen by a distant observer, from the accretion disc around a rapidly rotating neutron star. Our calculations are carried out in a fully general relativistic framework, with exact treatment of rotation. We take into account the Doppler shift, gravitational redshift and light bending effects in order to compute the observed spectrum. We find that light bending significantly modifies the high-energy part of the spectrum. Computed spectra for slowly rotating neutron stars are also presented. These results would be important for modelling the observed X-ray spectra o…
We propose a new interpretation of the quasar luminosity function (LF), derived from physically motivated models of quasar lifetimes and light curves. In our picture, quasars evolve rapidly and their lifetime depends on both their instantaneous and peak luminosities. We study this model using simulations of galaxy mergers that successfully reproduce a wide range of observed quasar phenomena. With lifetimes inferred from the simulations, we deconvolve the observed quasar LF from the distribution of peak luminosities, and show that they differ qualitatively, unlike for the simple models of quasa…
Current phenomenology suggests the presence of a compact baryon-poor energy source to cosmological gamma-ray bursts reacting to high-density matter. The association of short and long gamma-ray bursts with hyper- and suspended accretion onto slowly and rapidly spinning black holes predicts weak X-ray afterglow emissions from short bursts, as in GRB050509B and GRB050709. Long gamma-ray bursts are probably the birth place of rapidly spinning high-mass black holes in core-collapse of massive stars, as in GRB030329 with supernova SN2003dh. This predicts a long-duration burst of gravitational radiat…
We study the structure and properties of hot MHD accretion onto a Kerr black hole. In such a system, the hole is magnetically coupled to the inflowing gas and exerts a torque onto the accretion flow. A hot settling flow can form around the hole and transport the angular momentum outward, to the outer edge of the flow. Unlike other hot flows, such as advection- and convection-dominated flows and inflow-outflow solutions (ADAFs, CDAFs, and ADIOS), the properties of the hot settling flow are determined by the spin of the central black hole, but are insensitive to the mass accretion rate. Therefor…
We consider implications of our new model of quasar lifetimes and light curves for the quasar luminosity function (LF) at different frequencies and redshifts. In our picture, quasars evolve rapidly and the lifetime depends on both their instantaneous and peak luminosities. The bright end of the LF traces the peak intrinsic quasar activity, but the faint end consists of quasars which are either undergoing exponential growth to much larger masses and luminosities, or are in sub-Eddington quiescent states going into or coming out of a period of peak activity. The 'break' in the observed LF corres…
We report the first results from evolutions of a generic black-hole binary, i.e. a binary containing unequal mass black holes with misaligned spins. Our configuration, which has a mass ratio of 2:1, consists of an initially non-spinning hole orbiting a larger, rapidly spinning hole (specific spin a/m = 0.885), with the spin direction oriented -45 degrees with respect to the orbital plane. We track the inspiral and merger for ~2 orbits and find that the remnant receives a substantial kick of 454 km/s, more than twice as large as the maximum kick from non-spinning binaries. The remnant spin dire…
