Generation of gravitational waves and tidal disruptions in clumpy galaxies

Boris Pestoni, Elisa Bortolas, Pedro R. Capelo, Lucio Mayer

Published 2020-11-04Version 1

Obtaining a better understanding of intermediate-mass black holes (IMBHs) is crucial, as their properties could shed light on the origin and growth of their supermassive counterparts. Massive star-forming clumps, which are present in a large fraction of massive galaxies at $z \sim$ 1-3, are amongst the venues wherein IMBHs could reside. We perform a series of Fokker-Planck simulations to explore the occurrence of tidal disruption (TD) and gravitational wave (GW) events about an IMBH in a massive star-forming clump, modelling the latter so that its mass ($10^8 \,{\rm M}_{\odot}$) and effective radius ($100$ pc) are consistent with the properties of both observed and simulated clumps. We find that the TD and GW event rates are in the ranges $10^{-6}$-$10^{-5}$ and $10^{-8}$-$10^{-7}$ yr$^{-1}$, respectively, depending on the assumptions for the initial inner density profile of the system ($\rho \propto r^{-2}$ or $\propto r^{-1}$) and the initial mass of the central IMBH ($10^5$ or $10^3\,{\rm M}_{\odot}$). By integrating the GW event rate over $z$ = 1-3, we expect that the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna will be able to detect $\sim$2 GW events per yr coming from these massive clumps; the intrinsic rate of TD events from these systems amounts instead to a few $10^3$ per yr, a fraction of which will be observable by, e.g. the Square Kilometre Array and the Advanced Telescope for High Energy Astrophysics. In conclusion, our results support the idea that the forthcoming GW and electromagnetic facilities may have the unprecedented opportunity of unveiling the lurking population of IMBHs.