Quasistationary solutions of self-gravitating scalar fields around black holes

Abstract

Recent perturbative studies have shown the existence of long-lived, quasistationary configurations of scalar fields around black holes. In particular, such configurations have been found to survive for cosmological time scales, which is a requirement for viable dark matter halo models in galaxies based on such types of structures. In this paper we perform a series of numerical relativity simulations of dynamical nonrotating black holes surrounded by self-gravitating scalar fields. We solve numerically the coupled system of equations formed by the Einstein and the Klein-Gordon equations under the assumption of spherical symmetry using spherical coordinates. Our results confirm the existence of oscillating, long-lived, self-gravitating scalar field configurations around nonrotating black holes in highly dynamical spacetimes with a rich scalar field environment. Our numerical simulations are long-term stable and allow for the extraction of the resonant frequencies to make a direct comparison with results obtained in the linearized regime. A by-product of our simulations is the existence of a degeneracy in plausible long-lived solutions of Einstein equations that would induce the same motion of test particles, either with or without the existence of quasibound states. © 2015 American Physical Society.