Sgr A* Spin and Mass Estimates through the Detection of Multiple Extremely Large Mass Ratio Inspirals
We analyze the parameter estimation accuracy that can be achieved for the mass and spin of Sgr A*, the supermassive black hole in our Galactic center, by detecting multiple extremely large mass ratio inspirals (XMRIs). XMRIs are formed by brown dwarfs inspiraling into a supermassive black hole, thus...
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IOP Publishing
2025-01-01
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| Series: | The Astrophysical Journal |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ade149 |
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| author | Verónica Vázquez-Aceves Yiren Lin Alejandro Torres-Orjuela |
| author_facet | Verónica Vázquez-Aceves Yiren Lin Alejandro Torres-Orjuela |
| author_sort | Verónica Vázquez-Aceves |
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| description | We analyze the parameter estimation accuracy that can be achieved for the mass and spin of Sgr A*, the supermassive black hole in our Galactic center, by detecting multiple extremely large mass ratio inspirals (XMRIs). XMRIs are formed by brown dwarfs inspiraling into a supermassive black hole, thus emitting gravitational waves (GWs) inside the detection band of future space-based detectors such as LISA and TianQin. Theoretical estimates suggest the presence of approximately 10 XMRIs emitting detectable GWs, making them some of the most promising candidates for space-based GW detectors. Our analysis indicates that even if individual sources have low signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs; ≈10), high-precision parameter estimates can still be achieved by detecting multiple sources. In this case, the accuracy of the parameter estimates increases by approximately 1–2 orders of magnitude at least. Moreover, by analyzing a small sample of 400 initial conditions for XMRIs formed in the Galactic center, we estimate that almost 80% of the detectable XMRIs orbiting Sgr A* will have eccentricities between 0.43 and 0.95 and an SNR ∈ [10, 100]. The remaining ∼20% of the sources have an SNR ∈ [100, 1000] and eccentricities ranging from 0.25 to 0.92. Additionally, some XMRIs with high SNRs are far from being circular. These loud sources with SNR ≈ 1000 can have eccentricities as high as e ≈ 0.7; although their detection chances are low, representing ≲2% of the detectable sources, their presence is not ruled out. |
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| institution | Matheson Library |
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| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
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| series | The Astrophysical Journal |
| spelling | doaj-art-db26453a8b9b4c71b8471a1fd21e6d172025-07-09T13:34:51ZengIOP PublishingThe Astrophysical Journal1538-43572025-01-01987220810.3847/1538-4357/ade149Sgr A* Spin and Mass Estimates through the Detection of Multiple Extremely Large Mass Ratio InspiralsVerónica Vázquez-Aceves0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9458-8815Yiren Lin1https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2509-6558Alejandro Torres-Orjuela2https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5467-3505Kavli Institute for Astronomy and Astrophysics at Peking University , 100871 Beijing, People’s Republic of ChinaAstronomy Department, School of Physics, Peking University , Beijing 100871, People’s Republic of ChinaBeijing Institute of Mathematical Sciences and Applications , Beijing 101408, People’s Republic of China ; atorreso@bimsa.cnWe analyze the parameter estimation accuracy that can be achieved for the mass and spin of Sgr A*, the supermassive black hole in our Galactic center, by detecting multiple extremely large mass ratio inspirals (XMRIs). XMRIs are formed by brown dwarfs inspiraling into a supermassive black hole, thus emitting gravitational waves (GWs) inside the detection band of future space-based detectors such as LISA and TianQin. Theoretical estimates suggest the presence of approximately 10 XMRIs emitting detectable GWs, making them some of the most promising candidates for space-based GW detectors. Our analysis indicates that even if individual sources have low signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs; ≈10), high-precision parameter estimates can still be achieved by detecting multiple sources. In this case, the accuracy of the parameter estimates increases by approximately 1–2 orders of magnitude at least. Moreover, by analyzing a small sample of 400 initial conditions for XMRIs formed in the Galactic center, we estimate that almost 80% of the detectable XMRIs orbiting Sgr A* will have eccentricities between 0.43 and 0.95 and an SNR ∈ [10, 100]. The remaining ∼20% of the sources have an SNR ∈ [100, 1000] and eccentricities ranging from 0.25 to 0.92. Additionally, some XMRIs with high SNRs are far from being circular. These loud sources with SNR ≈ 1000 can have eccentricities as high as e ≈ 0.7; although their detection chances are low, representing ≲2% of the detectable sources, their presence is not ruled out.https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ade149Black hole physicsGravitational wavesSupermassive black holesMilky Way Galaxy physics |
| spellingShingle | Verónica Vázquez-Aceves Yiren Lin Alejandro Torres-Orjuela Sgr A* Spin and Mass Estimates through the Detection of Multiple Extremely Large Mass Ratio Inspirals The Astrophysical Journal Black hole physics Gravitational waves Supermassive black holes Milky Way Galaxy physics |
| title | Sgr A* Spin and Mass Estimates through the Detection of Multiple Extremely Large Mass Ratio Inspirals |
| title_full | Sgr A* Spin and Mass Estimates through the Detection of Multiple Extremely Large Mass Ratio Inspirals |
| title_fullStr | Sgr A* Spin and Mass Estimates through the Detection of Multiple Extremely Large Mass Ratio Inspirals |
| title_full_unstemmed | Sgr A* Spin and Mass Estimates through the Detection of Multiple Extremely Large Mass Ratio Inspirals |
| title_short | Sgr A* Spin and Mass Estimates through the Detection of Multiple Extremely Large Mass Ratio Inspirals |
| title_sort | sgr a spin and mass estimates through the detection of multiple extremely large mass ratio inspirals |
| topic | Black hole physics Gravitational waves Supermassive black holes Milky Way Galaxy physics |
| url | https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ade149 |
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