Mar Mezcua (Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy)

Supermassive Binary Black Hole Systems in Active Galaxies - Mar Mezcua Colloquium

AAO Lecture Theatre

Abstract

According to the hierarchical galaxy formation model, galaxies grow
through mergers that enhance star formation and trigger active galactic
nucleus (AGN) activity. If nearly all galaxies host a supermassive black
hole (SMBH) in their center, it is expected that pairs of SMBHs will be
formed in the course of a merger event. The detection and number estimates
of binary black hole (BBH) systems can, thus, help us to understand how
galaxies form and grow, and shed light on the evolutionary models that
rule the Universe. In this Colloquium IÂ’ll present the results of my PhD
thesis, which aims to pursue observational evidence for BBH systems. For
this, I have analyzed three kind of extragalactic objects: X-shaped radio
galaxies, Ultraluminous X-ray sources and double nucleus galaxies. I will
detail our observations and analyses of these systems and the conclusions
obtained when combined all observational data.