Project description
New study could help determine how primordial black holes formed in the cosmos
Primordial black holes (PBHs) are a hypothetical type of black hole that formed in the early universe long before the stars and galaxies formed. Such black holes could make up some part or all of dark matter. Indeed, dark matter could be swarms of PBHs clustered in haloes around every galaxy. Funded by the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions programme, the PBH MUSE project aims to place tighter constraints on the primordial universe and determine the origin of the recently observed gravitational waves emitted by the merger of two black holes. Small-scale simulations will help determine how PBHs affect structure formation and how external forces or objects could affect the evolution of a binary PBH system.
Objective
Born in the first moments of the universe, primordial black holes (PBHs) could provide the answers to many of the biggest open questions in cosmology. How did the universe begin? What is dark matter made of? PBHs are one of the oldest candidates to explain the nature of dark matter (DM), and considered by many to be one of the leading candidates — DM may be nothing more than swarms of PBHs clustered in haloes around every galaxy, and even if PBHs only make up a sub-dominant component of DM, their possible existence still has great implications not only for the evolution of the Universe, but also its creation. It is the aim of this project to improve constraints on the primordial universe, and to determine the origin of the black holes observed by LIGO-Virgo. To achieve this, I will perform studies fitting into 3 broad categories. Firstly, the formation of PBHs and binary systems in the early universe will be studied. The results will be used to determine an appropriate window function for use when calculating the PBH abundance - eliminating the largest source of uncertainty when calculating constraints on the primordial power spectrum from PBH constraints. Secondly, small-scale simulations will be used to determine the effect of PBHs on structure formation, which will be important for determining how external forces/objects might affect the evolution of binary PBH systems. Potentially, this may also lead to observable differences in the substructure of dark matter haloes between models with and without PBHs. Finally, the formation, evolution and possible disruption of systems containing 2 (or more) PBHs (or other compact objects) will be studied, making use of results from the previous sections.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- natural sciences physical sciences astronomy astrophysics black holes
- natural sciences physical sciences astronomy astrophysics dark matter
- natural sciences physical sciences astronomy physical cosmology
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Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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H2020-EU.1.3. - EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
MAIN PROGRAMME
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H2020-EU.1.3.2. - Nurturing excellence by means of cross-border and cross-sector mobility
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Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
MSCA-IF - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships (IF)
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) H2020-MSCA-IF-2020
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
2311 EZ Leiden
Netherlands
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.