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Toward very large baseline interferometry observations of black hole structure

Carballo-Rubio, Raúl; Cardoso, Vitor; Younsi, Ziri; (2022) Toward very large baseline interferometry observations of black hole structure. Physical Review D , 106 (8) , Article 084038. 10.1103/physrevd.106.084038. Green open access

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Abstract

Black holes hold a tremendous discovery potential. In this paper the extent to which the Event Horizon Telescope and its next generation upgrade can resolve their structure is quantified. Black holes are characterized by a perfectly absorptive boundary, with a specific area determined by intrinsic parameters of the black hole. We use a general parametrization of spherically symmetric spacetimes describing deviations from this behavior, with parameters controlling the size of the central object and its interaction with light, in particular through a specular reflection coefficient Γ and an intrinsic luminosity measured as a fraction η of that of the accretion disc. This enables us to study exotic compact objects and compare them with black holes in a model-independent manner. We determine the image features associated with the existence of a surface in the presence of a geometrically thin and optically thick accretion disc, identifying requirements for very large baseline interferometry observations to be able to cast meaningful constraints on these parameters, in particular regarding angular resolution and image dynamic range. For face-on observations, constraints of order η ≲ 10 − 4 , Γ ≲ 10 − 1 are possible with an enhanced Event Horizon Telescope array, imposing strong constraints on the nature of the central object.

Type: Article
Title: Toward very large baseline interferometry observations of black hole structure
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1103/physrevd.106.084038
Publisher version: https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevD.106.084038
Language: English
Additional information: This version is the version of record. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher’s terms and conditions.
UCL classification: UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Maths and Physical Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Maths and Physical Sciences > Dept of Space and Climate Physics
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS
UCL
URI: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10158538
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