Wave Dark Matter Scattering Resonances off Supermassive Black Hole Binaries
A first-principles derivation showing that the universal co-rotating density profile of wave (ultralight) dark matter around a supermassive black hole binary is the steady state of a scattering process, with the scattering becoming resonantly efficient when the binary separation matches discrete multiples of the dark matter's de Broglie wavelength (interpreted as bound-state resonances). Estimating the dark matter processed this way at galactic centres, the work predicts an observable change in the slope of the pulsar-timing-array gravitational-wave spectrum, offering a new probe of the nature of dark matter.
Wave Dark Matter Scattering Resonances off Supermassive Black Hole Binaries
Recent simulations of wave dark matter around black hole binaries revealed the formation of a universal density profile that co-rotates with the binary. We derive this profile from first principles, …