Black Hole Ergospheres

by Prof. Karl Mannheim (Universität Würzburg)

Tuesday 23 Jan 2024, 16:15 → 18:15 Europe/Berlin

Astrophysical black holes grow by accretion and mergers and therefore receive angular momentum. They are surrounded by a plasma-filled corotating region of spacetime, the ergosphere.Gravito-magnetic and ultrarelativistic collisional processes in the ergosphere give rise to a plethora of phenomena which can be studied using the methods of multi-messenger astroparticle physics and numerical simulations.  Considerable progress has been achieved in the understanding of the formation of Poynting-flux driven jets converting the rotational energy of the black holes into relativistic particles and magnetic fields. Next-generation instruments will allow to establish a coherent picture of the role of black holes in the non-thermal Universe.