Universal polarimetric signatures of the black hole photon ring
Universal polarimetric signatures of the black hole photon ring
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DOI：
10.1103/physrevd.101.084020
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发表时间：
2020-01
影响因子：
5
通讯作者：
E. Himwich;Michael D. Johnson;A. Lupsasca;A. Strominger
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
E. Himwich;Michael D. Johnson;A. Lupsasca;A. Strominger
黑洞图像呈现出一个亮度增强的环形区域。在不存在传播效应的情况下，这个 “光子环” 具有一些普遍特征，这些特征完全由广义相对论决定，且与辐射细节无关。在此，我们表明黑洞的偏振图像也展现出普遍特性。具体而言，光子环呈现出一种自相似的偏振模式，该模式编码了黑洞的自旋信息。我们探究了在长干涉基线条件下光子环相应的普遍偏振特征，并提出一种利用稀疏干涉阵列测量黑洞自旋的方法。通过未来将事件视界望远镜扩展到太空，这些特征有望实现对M87星系中超大质量黑洞自旋的测量，以及在强场区域对广义相对论进行精确检验。
Black hole images present an annular region of enhanced brightness. In the absence of propagation effects, this "photon ring" has universal features that are completely governed by general relativity and independent of the details of the emission. Here, we show that the polarimetric image of a black hole also displays universal properties. In particular, the photon ring exhibits a self-similar pattern of polarization that encodes the black hole spin. We explore the corresponding universal polarimetric signatures of the photon ring on long interferometric baselines, and propose a method for measuring the black hole spin using a sparse interferometric array. These signatures could enable spin measurements of the supermassive black hole in M87, as well as precision tests of general relativity in the strong field regime, via a future extension of the Event Horizon Telescope to space.