Resonant Locking Between Binary Systems Induced by Gravitational Waves

Abstract

The interaction of gravitational waves (GWs) with matter is thought to be typically negligible in the Universe. We identify an exception in the case of resonant interactions, where GWs emitted by a background binary system, such as an inspiraling supermassive black hole (SMBH) binary, cause a resonant response in a stellar-mass foreground binary and the frequencies of the two systems become, and remain, synchronized. We point out that this previously unexplored dynamical phenomenon is not only possible, but can lead to $\mathcal{O}(30)$ binary systems becoming resonantly locked in the host galaxy of merging SMBHs of mass $10^{8.5-11}\Msun$, each of which has a significantly reduced merger time. We predict $\mathcal{O}(10^{10})$ binary systems have been locked in the Universe's history. Resonant locking could be detected through anomalous inspiral of binary systems.

12 pages, 9 figures

References in corpus (21)

• Coevolution (Or Not) of Supermassive Black Holes and Host Galaxies
• The Assembly and Merging History of Supermassive Black Holes in Hierarchical Models of Galaxy Formation
• The Eccentric Kozai-Lidov Effect and Its Applications
• Damping of Tensor Modes in Cosmology
• The Evolution of Galaxy Number Density at z < 8 and its Implications
• Bridging the $\mu$Hz gap in the gravitational-wave landscape with binary resonance
• The binarity of Milky Way F,G,K stars as a function of effective temperature and metallicity
• Brightening of an Accretion Disk Due to Viscous Dissipation of Gravitational Waves During the Coalescence of Supermassive Black Holes
• Gravitational Waves in Cold Dark Matter
• Detecting stochastic gravitational waves with binary resonance
• Binary Systems as Resonance Detectors for Gravitational Waves
• Stars as resonant absorbers of gravitational waves
• Axion resonances in binary pulsar systems
• The size--mass and other structural parameter ($n,{\mu }_z,R_z$) relations for local bulges/spheroids from multicomponent decompositions
• Gravitational Wave Heating of Stars and Accretion Disks
• Scattering of scalar, electromagnetic and gravitational waves from binary systems
• Upper Limit on the Dissipation of Gravitational Waves in Gravitationally Bound Systems
• Axion oscillations in binary systems: angle-action surgery
• Orbital effects of a monochromatic plane gravitational wave with ultra-low frequency incident on a gravitationally bound two-body system
• Resonant growth of stellar oscillations by incident gravitational waves
• A supplementary radiation-reaction force between two binaries