Lessons from Radiative and MHD Simulations for Supermassive Blackhole Growth
Chi-kwan Chan (Harvard) - Nov 9, 2009 at 12:10 pm
Observations have shown that supermassive blackholes exist
in the nuclei of almost all galaxies. Unlike stellar-mass
blackholes, which formed by gravitational collapse of stars,
the origin of these supermassive objects are not well
understood. In this talk, I will show how we can use
radiative and MHD simulations to investigate whether
supermassive blackholes can grow purely by accretion. I
will first give a review on some recent results in accretion
physics. I will argue that, by using local MHD simulations,
we have made very important progress in understanding the
role magnetorotational instability and turbulence play in
angular momentum transport. We can now build more physical
accretion disk models which go beyond the standard
alpha-prescription. I will then describe how to incorporate
these models into radiation hydrodynamic simulations to
study super-Eddington accretion flows and place limits on the
growth of blackholes in the early Universe.
The seminar will be held in 544 Campbell Hall.
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