Abstract: A black hole鈥檚 accretion rate controls its destiny, governing its spin, growth, luminosity, and feedback. However, connecting these crucial quantities to the scales we can actually observe, remains a major theoretical hurdle. In this talk, I will present recent simulations of magnetized gas feeding rapidly rotating black holes. These models offer new insights into the mechanics of gas consumption and ejection. I will demonstrate how these findings apply to a vast range of systems, linking the physics of supermassive black holes at the centers of galaxies to stellar-mass black holes born in dying stars.
The Black Hole Diet: How Accretion Controls Spin, Growth, and Feedback
Alexander Tchekhovskoy (Northwestern University) // March 26, 2026
Abstract: A black hole鈥檚 accretion rate controls its destiny, governing its spin, growth, luminosity, and feedback. However, connecting these crucial quantities to the scales we can actually observe, remains a major theoretical hurdle. In this talk, I will present recent simulations of magnetized gas feeding rapidly rotating black holes. These models offer new insights into the mechanics of gas consumption and ejection. I will demonstrate how these findings apply to a vast range of systems, linking the physics of supermassive black holes at the centers of galaxies to stellar-mass black holes born in dying stars.
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