Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Date of Degree

6-2026

Document Type

Master's Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science

Program

Astrophysics

Advisor

Barry McKernan

Advisor

K.E. Saavik Ford

Subject Categories

Cosmology, Relativity, and Gravity | Other Astrophysics and Astronomy

Keywords

Gravitational Waves, Active Galactic Nuclei, Black Holes

Abstract

Binary black hole mergers (BBH), some likely originating from active galactic nuclei (AGN), are observed by ground-based detectors such as LIGO-Virgo-KAGRA (LVK) and will be detected by future space-based detectors such as the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) and the Laser Interferometer Lunar Antenna (LILA). The dynamics of AGN may be responsible for a significant fraction of BBH mergers soon to be observed by LISA and LILA, yet the dynamics of BBH mergers within AGN disks remains ambiguous despite their appearance in gravitational wave observations. Monte carlo For AGN Channel Testing and Simulation (McFACTS) is an open-source software used to simulate BBH populations residing within AGN disks with different options allowing for the exploration of parameter space. Within McFACTS, BBH mergers evolve only through gas drag and dynamical interactions with objects in the disk, without considerations of the relativistic effects that lead up to the final merger and remnant properties. This thesis describes the improvements on McFACTS by routing inspiral BBH parameters into the surfinBH numerical relativity surrogate model NRsur to more precisely predict the merger remnant kick velocities, masses, and spins than current analytical models. The addition of this surrogate model has shown that BBH mergers processed within McFACTS require numerical relativity to accurately describe the remnants spin, without the addition of gas, as well as the implications for disk structure and lifetime. These upgrades will be essential for future McFACTS simulations for BBH mergers detectable by LISA and LILA.

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