We present a calculation of the scalar field self-force (SSF) acting on a scalar-charge particle in a strong-field orbit around a Kerr black hole. Our calculation specializes to circular and equatorial geodesic orbits. The analysis is an implementation of the standard mode-sum regularization scheme: We first calculate the multipole modes of the scalar-field perturbation using numerical integration in the frequency domain, and then apply a certain regularization procedure to each of the modes. The dissipative piece of the SSF is found to be consistent with the flux of energy and angular momentum carried by the scalar waves through the event horizon and out to infinity. The conservative (radial) component of the SSF is found to be attractive (inward pointing) for $r_0>r_{\rm c}(a)$ and repulsive (outward pointing) for $r_0<r_{\rm c}(a)$, where $a$ is the Kerr spin parameter, $r_0$ is the Boyer-Lindquist orbital radius, and $r_{\rm c}$ is a critical $a$-dependent radius at which the conservative SSF vanishes. When the motion is retrograde the conservative SSF is repulsive for all $r_0$ (as in the Schwarzschild case). The dominant conservative effect of the SSF in Schwarzschild spacetime is known to be of 3rd post-Newtonian (PN) order (with a logarithmic running). Our numerical results suggest that the leading-order PN correction due to the black hole's spin arises from spin-orbit coupling at 3PN, which dominates the overall SSF effect at large $r_0$. In PN language, the change-of-sign of the radial SSF is attributed to an interplay between the spin-orbit term ($\propto -ar_0^{-4.5}$) and the "Schwarzschild" term ($\propto r_0^{-5}\log r_0$).
We perform a detailed analysis of the properties of stationary observers located on the equatorial plane of the ergosphere in a Kerr spacetime, including light-surfaces. This study highlights crucial differences between black hole and the super-spinner sources. In the case of Kerr naked singularities, the results allow us to distinguish between "weak" and "strong" singularities, corresponding to spin values close to or distant from the limiting case of extreme black holes, respectively. We derive important limiting angular frequencies for naked singularities. We especially study very weak sing…
In this work, we base on the second-order post-Minkowskian equations of motion, and apply an iterative technique to analytically derive the gravitational deflection of the relativistic particles in the equatorial plane of Kerr-Newman black hole with a radial (or longitudinal) and constant velocity. We find that the kinematically correctional effects on the second-order contributions to the deflection can be expressed into a very compact form, which are valid for both the massive particle and photon. Our result reduces to the previous formulation for the first-order deflection caused by a movin…
The possibility that two toroidal accretion configurations may be orbiting around a~super--massive Kerr black hole has been addressed. Such tori may be formed during different stages of the Kerr attractor accretion history. We consider the relative rotation of the tori and the corotation or counterrotation of a~single torus with respect to the Kerr attractor. We give classification of the couples of accreting and non--accreting tori in dependence on the Kerr black hole dimensionless spin. We demonstrate that only in few cases a~double accretion tori system may be formed under specific conditio…
We study a viable connection between the circular-equatorial orbits and reflection symmetry across the equatorial plane of a vacuum stationary axis-symmetric spacetime in general relativity. The behavior of the circular equatorial orbits in the direction perpendicular to the equatorial plane is studied, and different outcomes in the presence and in the absence of the reflection symmetry are discussed. We conclude that in the absence of the equatorial reflection symmetry neither stable nor unstable circular orbit can exist on the equatorial plane. Moreover, to address the observational aspects,…
We present a numerical code for calculating the self force on a scalar charge moving in a bound (eccentric) geodesic in the equatorial plane of a Kerr black hole. We work in the frequency domain and make use of the method of extended homogeneous solutions [Phys.\ Rev.\ D {\bf 78}, 084021 (2008)], in conjunction with mode-sum regularization. Our work is part of a program to develop a computational architecture for fast and efficient self-force calculations, alternative to time-domain methods. We find that our frequency-domain method outperforms existing time-domain schemes for small eccentricit…
Equatorial motion of test particles in the Kerr-de Sitter spacetimes is considered. Circular orbits are determined, their properties are discussed for both the black-hole and naked-singularity spacetimes, and their relevance for thin accretion discs is established.
In this work we analyze the effects of an external magnetic field on charged particles on equatorial circular orbits in a Kerr spacetime, both in the black hole and the naked singularity cases. Understanding these phenomena is of great importance because equatorial circular orbits are a key ingredient of simple accretion disc models. We focus on two important magnetic field configurations: a) a uniform magnetic field aligned with the angular momentum and b) a dipolar magnetic field. We center our attention on the effect of these external fields on the marginally bounded and marginally stable e…
Deflection angle for a light ray travelling in the equatorial plane of a rotating Kerr mass has been already calculated by various investigators. Considering the light ray to be travelling only slightly above the equatorial plane, calculations have been made for such a ray for its deflection angle. In this paper, we calculate deflection angles for the light ray at various heights, which are small compared to the impact parameter and derive corresponding analytical expressions for deflection angle.
We analyze the properties of circular orbits of test particles on the equatorial plane of a rotating central mass whose gravitational field is described by the Kerr spacetime. For rotating black holes and naked singularities we explore all the spatial regions where circular orbits can exist and analyze the behavior of the energy and the angular momentum of the corresponding test particles. In particular, we find all the radii at which a test particle can have zero angular momentum due to the repulsive gravity effects generated by naked singularities. We classify all the stability zones of circ…
We study the bound orbit conditions for equatorial and eccentric orbits around a Kerr black hole both in the parameter space ($E$, $L$, $a$) representing the energy, angular momentum of the test particle, and spin of the black hole, and also ($e$, $μ$, $a$) space representing the eccentricity, inverse-latus rectum of the orbit, and spin. We apply these conditions and implement the relativistic precession (RP) model to M82X-1, which is an Intermediate-mass black hole (IMBH) system, where two high-frequency Quasi-Periodic Oscillations (HFQPOs) and a low-frequency QPO were simultaneously observed…
In this paper, we revisit the possibilities of Bañados-Silk-West (BSW) effect in Kerr-Newman-Taub-NUT (KNTN) spacetime for two neutral particles moving over the equatorial plane and constant $θ$ in Boyer-Lindquist coordinate. Contrary to a previous study on this topic, we found that BSW effect for two particles confined to move over the equatorial plane is not possible. Numerical calculations shows that BSW effect in constant $θ$ geodesics is possible under certain circumstances.
We present a detailed analysis of the orbital circular motion of electrically neutral test particles on the equatorial plane of the Kerr-Newman spacetime. Many details of the motion in the cases of black hole and naked singularity sources are pointed out. We identify four different types of orbital regions, which depend on the properties of the orbital angular momentum, and define four different kinds of naked singularities, according to the values of the charge-to-mass ratio of the source. It is shown that the presence of a particular type of counter-rotating test particles is sufficient to u…
We analyze the stability of circular geodesics for timelike as well as null geodesics of the Kerr BH spacetime with rotation parameter on the equatorial plane by Lyapunov stability analysis. Also, we verify the results of stability by presenting the phase portrait for both timelike and null geodesics. Further, by reviewing the Kosambi-Cartan-Chern (KCC) theory, we analyze the Jacobi stability for Kerr spacetime and present a comparative study of the methods used for stability analysis of geodesics.
We analytically compute the gravitational self-force correction to the gyroscope precession along slightly eccentric equatorial orbits in the Kerr spacetime, generalizing previous results for the Schwarzschild spacetime. Our results are accurate through the 9.5 post-Newtonian order and to second order in both eccentricity and rotation parameter. We also provide a post-Newtonian check of our results based on the currently known Hamiltonian for spinning binaries.
The precession of a test gyroscope along unbound equatorial plane geodesic orbits around a Kerr black hole is analyzed with respect to a static reference frame whose axes point towards the "fixed stars." The accumulated precession angle after a complete scattering process is evaluated and compared with the corresponding change in the orbital angle. Limiting results for the non-rotating Schwarzschild black hole case are also discussed.
In this paper, we show the additive separation of the Hamilton-Jacobi equation, present the 4-velocity of the test particles, and attempt to find the equatorial circular photon orbit (ECPO) in the Kerr-Sen-Taub-NUT (KSTN) solution of the low energy limit of heterotic string theory. In the process of trying to find the ECPO, we instead encounter a ring singularity that could be outside the horizon of the KSTN black hole.
For a self-gravitating particle of mass μin orbit around a Kerr black hole of mass M >> μ, we compute the O(μ/M) shift in the frequency of the innermost stable circular equatorial orbit (ISCEO) due to the conservative piece of the gravitational self-force acting on the particle. Our treatment is based on a Hamiltonian formulation of the dynamics in terms of geodesic motion in a certain locally-defined effective smooth spacetime. We recover the same result using the so-called first law of binary black-hole mechanics. We give numerical results for the ISCEO frequency shift as a function of the b…
The precession of a test gyroscope along stable bound equatorial plane orbits around a Kerr black hole is analyzed and the precession angular velocity of the gyro's parallel transported spin vector and the increment in precession angle after one orbital period is evaluated. The parallel transported Marck frame which enters this discussion is shown to have an elegant geometrical explanation in terms of the electric and magnetic parts of the Killing-Yano 2-form and a Wigner rotation effect.
Discussion of the equatorial photon motion in Kerr-Newman black-hole and naked-singularity spacetimes with a non-zero cosmological constant is presented. Both repulsive and attractive cosmological constants are considered. Circular photon orbits are determined, and their stability is established. The spacetimes are divided into separated classes according to the properties of the `effective potential'. There is a special class of Kerr-Newman-de Sitter black-hole spacetimes with so-called `restricted repulsive barrier'. Further, the azimuthal motion is discussed and photon trajectories are give…
We investigate in detail the circular motion of test particles on the equatorial plane of the ergoregion in the Kerr spacetime. We consider all the regions where circular motion is allowed, and we analyze the stability properties and the energy and angular momentum of the test particles. We show that the structure of the stability regions has definite features that make it possible to distinguish between black holes and naked singularities. The naked singularity case presents a very structured non-connected set of regions of orbital stability, where the presence of counterrotating particles an…
The Detweiler-Barack-Sago redshift function for particles moving along slightly eccentric equatorial orbits around a Kerr black hole is currently known up to the second order in eccentricity, second order in spin parameter, and the 8.5 post-Newtonian order. We improve the analytical computation of such a gauge-invariant quantity by including terms up to the fourth order in eccentricity at the same post-Newtonian approximation level. We also check that our results agrees with the corresponding post-Newtonian expectation of the same quantity, calculated by using the currently known Hamiltonian f…
General results on equatorial geodesics are exposed in the case of circular spacetimes featuring an equatorial reflection symmetry. The way the geodesic equation equivalently rewrites in terms of an effective potential is explicitly recalled for circular and non-circular equatorial geodesics. This provides a practical tool to discuss their stability. Statements are illustrated in Kerr spacetime.
We examine the evolution, under gravitational radiation reaction, of slightly eccentric equatorial orbits of point particles around Kerr black holes. Our method involves numerical integration of the Sasaki-Nakamura equation. It is discovered that such orbits decrease in eccentricity throughout most of the inspiral, until shortly before the innermost stable circular orbit (ISCO), when a critical radius $r_{\text{crit}}$ is reached beyond which the inspiralling orbits increase in eccentricity. It is shown that the number of orbits remaining in this last (eccentricity increasing) phase of the ins…
We examine the behaviour of circular geodesics describing orbits of neutral test particles around an extreme Kerr-Newman black hole. It is well known that the radial Boyer-Lindquist coordinates of the prograde photon orbit $r=r_{\rm ph}$, marginally bound orbit $r=r_{\rm mb}$ and innermost stable orbit $r=r_{\rm ms}$ of the extreme Kerr black hole all coincide with the event horizon's value $r=r_+$. We find that for the extreme Kerr-Newman black hole with mass $M$, angular momentum $J$ and electric charge $Q=\pm\sqrt{M^2-J^2/M^2}$ ($|J|\le M^2$) the coordinate equalities $r_{\rm ph}=r_+$, $r_{…
We study tidal effects on self-gravitating Newtonian stars rotating around a Kerr black hole in stable circular orbits away from the equatorial plane. Such cases are exemplified by a non-vanishing Carter's constant. Here, we calculate the tidal disruption limit (Roche limit) of the star numerically, in Fermi normal coordinates. The Roche limit is found to depend strongly on the choice of the orbit, and differs significantly from the equatorial plane result as one approaches nearly polar orbits. As expected, this difference is large when the star is close to the black hole (near to the innermos…
We report exotic orbital phenomena of spinning test particles orbiting around a Kerr black hole, i.e., some orbits of spinning particles are asymmetrical about the equatorial plane. When a nonspinning test particle orbits around a Kerr black hole in a strong field region, due to relativistic orbital precessions, the pattern of trajectories is symmetrical about the equatorial plane of the Kerr black hole. However, the patterns of the spinning particles' orbit are no longer symmetrical about the equatorial plane for some orbital configurations and large spins. We argue that these asymmetrical pa…
In this work, we perform a detailed analysis of the equatorial motion of the charged test particles in Kerr-Newman-Taub-NUT spacetime. By working out the orbit equation in the radial direction, we examine possible orbit types. We investigate the conditions for existence of bound orbits in causality-preserving region as well as the conditions for existence of circular orbits for charged and uncharged particles. We also study the effect of NUT parameter on Newtonian orbits. Finally, we give exact analytical solutions of equations of equatorial motion for a charged test particle.
We investigate stationary accretion of the collisionless Vlasov gas onto the Kerr black hole, occurring in the equatorial plane. The solution is specified by imposing asymptotic boundary conditions: at infinity the gas obeys the Maxwell-Jüttner distribution, restricted to the equatorial plane (both in positions and momenta). In the vicinity of the black hole, the motion of the gas is governed by the spacetime geometry. We compute accretion rates of the rest-mass, the energy, and the angular momentum, as well as the particle number surface density, focusing on the dependence of these quantities…
In this paper we focus on the relation between quasinormal modes (QNMs) and a rotating black hole shadows. As a specific example, we consider the quantum deformed Kerr black hole obtained via Newman--Janis--Azreg-A\"ınou algorithm. In particular, using the geometric-optics correspondence between the parameters of a QNMs and the conserved quantities along geodesics, we show that, in the eikonal limit, the real part of QNMs is related to the Keplerian frequency for equatorial orbits. To this end, we explore the typical shadow radius for the viewing angles, $θ_0=π/2$, and obtained an interesting …
We study binary systems in which a stellar mass compact object spirals into a massive black hole, known as extreme mass ratio inspirals, in scenarios with a new fundamental scalar field. Earlier work has shown that, in most interesting such scenarios and to leading order in the mass ratio, the massive black holes can be adequately approximated by the Kerr metric and the imprint of the scalar field on the waveform is fully controlled by the scalar charge of the stellar mass object. Here we use this drastic simplification in the inspiral modelling and consider eccentric equatorial orbits. We stu…
The general relativistic Poynting-Robertson effect is a dissipative and non-linear dynamical system obtained by perturbing through radiation processes the geodesic motion of test particles orbiting around a spinning compact object, described by the Kerr metric. Using the Melnikov method we find that, in a suitable range of parameters, chaotic behavior is present in the motion of a test particle driven by the Poynting-Robertson effect in the Kerr equatorial plane.
In this paper we extend our previous works on spherically symmetric accretion onto black holes and super-spinars to the case in which the fluid has a finite angular momentum initially. We run 2.5D and 3D general relativistic hydrodynamic simulations of the accretion of a fat disk. We study how the accretion process changes by changing the values of the parameters of our model. We show that the value of the fluid angular momentum critically determines turn-on and off the production of powerful equatorial outflows around super-spinars. For corotating disks, equatorial outflows are efficiently ge…
In the present paper, we study numerically the equatorial lensing and quasiequatorial lensing by Kerr black hole pierced by a cosmic string in the strong deflection limit. We calculate the strong deflection limit coefficients and the deflection angle, which are found to depend closely on the cosmic string parameter $β$ and dimensionless spin $a_{*}$. The magnification and positions of relativistic images are also computed in the strong deflection limit and a two-dimensional lens equation is derived. The most important and outstanding effect is that the caustics drift away from the optical axis…
We study the gravitational lensing by a Kerr-Sen Black Hole arising in heterotic string theory. A closed form expression for the bending angle of light in equatorial plane of Kerr-Sen Black Hole is derived as a function of impact parameter, spin and charge of the Black Hole. Results obtained are also compared with the corresponding cases of Kerr Black Hole in general relativity. It is observed that charge parameter behaves qualitatively similar as the spin parameter for photons travelling in direct orbits while behaves differently for photons in retrograde orbits around Black Hole. As the nume…
Recently Van Putten has suggested that superradiance of magnetosonic waves in a toroidal magnetosphere around a Kerr black hole may play a role in the central engine of gamma-ray bursts. In this context, he computed (in the WKB approximation) the superradiant amplification of scalar waves confined to a thin equatorial wedge around a Kerr hole and found that the superradiance is higher than for radiation incident over all angles. This paper presents calculations of both spin-0 (scalar) superradiance (integrating the radial equation rather than using the WKB method) and and spin-1 (electromagnet…
The spacetime geometry on the equatorial slice through a Kerr black hole is formally equivalent to the geometry felt by phonons entrained in a rotating fluid vortex. We analyse this situation in some detail: First, we find the most general ``acoustic geometry'' compatible with the fluid dynamic equations in a collapsing/expanding perfect-fluid line vortex. Second, we demonstrate that there is a suitable choice of coordinates on the equatorial slice through a Kerr black hole that puts it into this vortex form; though it is not possible to put the entire Kerr spacetime into perfect-fluid ``acous…
We present the first numerical calculation of the (local) metric perturbation produced by a small compact object moving on an eccentric equatorial geodesic around a Kerr black hole, accurate to first order in the mass ratio. The procedure starts by first solving the Teukolsky equation to obtain the Weyl scalar $ψ_4$ using semi-analytical methods. The metric perturbation is then reconstructed from $ψ_4$ in an (outgoing) radiation gauge, adding the appropriate non-radiative contributions arising from the shifts in mass and angular momentum of the spacetime. As a demonstration we calculate the ge…
This paper presents the first calculation of the gravitational self-force on a small compact object on an eccentric equatorial orbit around a Kerr black hole to first order in the mass-ratio. That is the pointwise correction to the object's equations of motion (both conservative and dissipative) due to its own gravitational field treated as a linear perturbation to the background Kerr spacetime generated by the much larger spinning black hole. The calculation builds on recent advances on constructing the local metric and self-force from solutions of the Teukolsky equation, which led to the cal…
In this paper we present an analytical treatment of gravitational lensing by Kerr black holes in the limit of very large deflection angles, restricting to observers in the equatorial plane. We accomplish our objective starting from the Schwarzschild black hole and adding corrections up to second order in the black hole spin. This is sufficient to provide a full description of all caustics and the inversion of lens mapping for sources near them. On the basis of these formulae we argue that relativistic images of Low Mass X-ray Binaries around Sgr A* are very likely to be seen by future X-ray in…
Analytical series expansions for the bending of light in the equatorial plane of a Kerr black hole are presented in both the strong and weak deflection regimes. It is critical that these are known in analytical form so further analysis can be done for predicting different properties of images formed in gravitational lensing. Starting with the exact bending angle in terms of the spin parameter, we apply a perturbative scheme for rewriting the bending angle as series expansions in terms of the impact parameter of the incident light ray. The asymmetry introduced by the black hole spin results in …
We use the frequency and time domain Teukolsky formalism to calculate gravitational-wave fluxes from a spinning body on a bound eccentric equatorial orbit around a Kerr black hole. The spinning body is represented as a point particle following the pole-dipole approximation of the Mathisson-Papapetrou-Dixon equations. Reformulating these equations we are not only able to find the trajectory of a spinning particle in terms of its constants of motion, but also to provide a method to calculate the azimuthal and the radial frequency of this trajectory. Using these orbital quantities, we introduce t…
The region of spacetime near the event horizon of a black hole can be viewed as a deep potential well at large gravitational redshift relative to distant observers. However, matter orbiting in this region travels at relativistic speeds and can impart a significant Doppler shift to its electromagnetic emission, sometimes resulting in a net observed blueshift at infinity. Thus, a black hole broadens the line emission from monochromatic sources in its vicinity into a smoothly decaying "red wing"--whose flux vanishes at large redshift--together with a "blue blade" that retains finite flux up to a …
A general study of the stability of equatorial circular orbits in static axially symmetric gravitating systems is presented. Important circular geodesics as the marginally stable orbit, the marginally bounded orbit and the photon orbit are analyzed. We found general expressions for the radius, specific energy, specific angular momentum and the radius of the marginally stable orbit, both for null and timelike circular geodesics. Solutions expressed in cylindrical coordinates, oblate spheroidal coordinates, and prolate spheroidal coordinates are considered. We show that all null circular orbits …
We present the results of three-dimensional general relativistic hydrodynamic simulations of adiabatic and spherically symmetric accretion in Kerr space-time. We consider compact objects with spin parameter $|a_*| \le 1$ (black holes) and with $|a_*| > 1$ (super-spinars). Our full three-dimensional simulations confirm the formation of equatorial outflows for high values of $|a_*|$, as found in our previous work in 2.5 dimensions. We show that the critical value of $|a_*|$ determining the onset of powerful outflows depends mainly on the radius of the compact object. The phenomenon of equatorial…
The data from the event horizon telescope have provided a novel view of the vicinity of the horizon of a black hole (BH), by imaging the region around the light-ring. They have also raised hopes for measuring in the near future, features of the image (or the shadow) related to higher order effects of photons traveling in these regions, such as the appearance of higher order bright rings. While the prospect of measuring these fine features of Kerr BHs is very interesting in itself, there are some even more intriguing prospects for observing novel features of possible non-Kerr objects, in the ca…
The observation of the bending of light by mass, now known as gravitational lensing, was key in establishing general relativity as one of the pillars of modern physics. In the past couple of decades, there has been increasing interest in using gravitational lensing to test general relativity beyond the weak deflection limit. Black holes and neutron stars produce the strong gravitational fields needed for such tests. For a rotating compact object, the distinction between prograde and retrograde photon trajectories becomes important. In this paper, we explore subtleties that arise in interpretin…
The detection of gravitational waves from Extreme mass Ratio Inspirals (EMRIs) by the future space-based gravitational-wave detectors demands the generation of accurate enough waveform templates. Since the spin of the smaller secondary body cannot be neglected for the detection and parameter estimation of EMRIs, we study its influence on the phase of the gravitational waves from EMRIs with spinning secondary. We focus on generic eccentric equatorial orbits around a Kerr black hole. To model the spinning secondary object, we use the Mathisson-Papapetrou-Dixon equations in the pole-dipole approx…
We present exact solutions of test particle orbits spiralling inward from the innermost stable circular orbit (ISCO) of a Kerr black hole. Our results are valid for any allowed value of the angular momentum $a$-parameter of the Kerr metric. These solutions are of considerable physical interest. In particular, the radial 4-velocity of these orbits is both remarkably simple and, with the radial coordinate scaled by its ISCO value, universal in form, otherwise completely independent of the black hole spin.
In this second paper, we develop an analytical theory of quasi-equatorial lensing by Kerr black holes. In this setting we solve perturbatively our general lens equation with displacement given in Paper I, going beyond weak-deflection Kerr lensing to third order in our expansion parameter epsilon, which is the ratio of the angular gravitational radius to the angular Einstein radius. We obtain new formulas and results for the bending angle, image positions, image magnifications, total unsigned magnification, and centroid, all to third order in epsilon and including the displacement. New results …
