Thesis

Black hole spontaneous scalarisation: non-linear dynamics and gravitational-wave signatures

• Call:

  IDPASC Portugal - PHD Programme 2019

• Academic Year:

  2019 / 2020

• Domains:

  Astrophysics | General Relativity

• Supervisor:

  Carlos Herdeiro

• Co-Supervisor:

  Nicolas Sanchis-Gual

• Institution:

  Instituto Superior Técnico

• Host Institution:

  Instituto Superior Técnico

• Abstract:

  Gravitational Wave (GW) Astronomy allows unprecedented tests of strong gravity systems and, in particular, black holes (BHs). Vacuum General Relativity (GR) yields the Kerr solution as the only possible BH. But beyond vacum GR new possibilities emerge. Then, dynamical viability is a tight filtre for alternative BH models, so that their phenomenological viability may be assessed. This proposal focuses on the non-linear dynamics and GW phenomenology of a dynamical mechanisms known to yield modified BHs with respect to the standard (electro-)vacum GR ones: spontaneous scalarisation. Both modelds with charged BHs (as toy models) and models with higher curvature corrections will be considered. Fully non-linear numerical relativity techniques will be considered, complemented with perturbation theory studies. Formation scenarios, stability analyses and binary systems shall be tackled, with the goal of testing the viability of the scalarised BHs and extracting GW templates of relevance for LIGO/Virgo searches.