Abstract

We evolve equal-mass, equal-spin black-hole binaries with specific spins of a/mH 0.925, the highest spins simulated thus far and nearly the largest possible for Bowen-York black holes, in a set of configurations with the spins counter-aligned and pointing in the orbital plane, which maximizes the recoil velocities of the merger remnant, as well as a configuration where the two spins point in the same direction as the orbital angular momentum, which maximizes the orbital hang-up effect and remnant spin. The coordinate radii of the individual apparent horizons in these cases are very small and the simulations require very high central resolutions (h M/320). We find that these highly spinning holes reach a maximum recoil velocity of 3300 km s−1 (the largest simulated so far) and, for the hangup configuration, a remnant spin of a/mH 0.922. These results are consistent with our previous predictions for the maximum recoil velocity of 4000 km s−1 and remnant spin; the latter reinforcing the prediction that cosmic censorship is not violated by merging highly spinning black-hole binaries. We also numerically solve the initial data for, and evolve, a single maximal-Bowen-York-spin black hole, and confirm that the 3-metric has an O(r−2) singularity at the puncture, rather than the usual O(r−4) singularity seen for non-maximal spins.

Publication Date

7-24-2008

Comments

This is the pre-print of an article published by the American Physical Society. The final, published version is available here: https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevD.78.024039

© 2008 American Physical Society

Also archived in arXiv:0803.0351 v2 Jul 17, 2008.

Note: imported from RIT’s Digital Media Library running on DSpace to RIT Scholar Works in February 2014.

Document Type

Article

Department, Program, or Center

School of Physics and Astronomy (COS)

Campus

RIT – Main Campus

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