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Kerr black holes as particle accelerators to arbitrarily high energy
Máximo Bañados1, Joseph Silk, Stephen M West
1Facultad de Física, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Avenida Vicuña Mackenna 4860, Santiago, Chile. maxbanados@fis.puc.cl
Physical Review Letters
|October 2, 2009
Summary
Intermediate mass black holes with dark matter spikes can act as particle accelerators, enabling high-energy collisions. This offers a unique way to probe Planck-scale physics through black hole ejecta.
Area of Science:
- Astrophysics
- Particle Physics
- Cosmology
Background:
- Intermediate mass black holes (IMBHs) are theorized precursors to supermassive black holes.
- These IMBHs may be surrounded by dense cold dark matter (CDM) spikes.
- The properties of IMBHs and CDM interactions are key areas of astrophysical research.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the potential of IMBHs as particle accelerators.
- To explore the possibility of probing Planck-scale physics using IMBH phenomena.
- To analyze the implications of high-energy collisions around Kerr black holes.
Main Methods:
- Theoretical modeling of particle collisions near Kerr black holes.
- Analysis of dark matter density spikes around IMBHs.
- Investigating the behavior of ejecta from high-energy interactions.
Main Results:
- IMBHs surrounded by CDM spikes can function as particle accelerators.
- Collisions can occur at arbitrarily high center-of-mass energies for Kerr black holes.
- The resulting ejecta is highly redshifted.
Conclusions:
- IMBHs offer a novel mechanism for particle acceleration.
- This phenomenon presents a unique opportunity to probe Planck-scale physics.
- Observational signatures, though redshifted, could provide insights into fundamental physics.
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