Fundamental physics opportunities with future ground-based mm/sub-mm VLBI arrays
Dimitry Ayzenberg (Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen)
Lindy Blackburn (Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, Harvard University)
Richard Brito (Universidade Técnica de Lisboa)
Silke Britzen (Max-Planck-Institute for Radio Astronomy)
Avery E. Broderick (Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics, University of Waterloo)
Raúl Carballo-Rubio (University of Central Florida, University of Southern Denmark)
Vitor Cardoso (University of Copenhagen, Universidade Técnica de Lisboa)
Leonid I. Gurvits (Joint Institute for VLBI ERIC, TU Delft - Astrodynamics & Space Missions)
Xiao Xue (TU Delft - QCD/Vandersypen Lab, Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron DESY, Hamburg University of Technology)
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Abstract
The Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) Collaboration recently published the first images of the supermassive black holes in the cores of the Messier 87 and Milky Way galaxies. These observations have provided a new means to study supermassive black holes and probe physical processes occurring in the strong-field regime. We review the prospects of future observations and theoretical studies of supermassive black hole systems. Current ground-based very-long-baseline interferometry (VLBI) arrays like the EHT and proposed future extensions like the next-generation Event Horizon Telescope will greatly enhance the capabilities of black-hole imaging interferometry. These enhancements will open up several previously inaccessible avenues of investigation, thereby providing important new insights into the properties of supermassive black holes and their environments. This review describes the current state of knowledge for five key science cases, summarising the unique challenges and opportunities for fundamental physics investigations that future mm/sub-mm VLBI developments will enable.
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