Black Hole Perturbation Theory - From Love Numbers to Nonlinear Ringdown

Abstract

The speaker will discuss two recent developments in black hole perturbation theory: (1) the hidden symmetries behind the vanishing of the Love numbers, which characterize a black hole’s tidal response, and (2) the second order quasi-normal modes observed in numerical simulations of black hole mergers.

About the Speaker

Prof. Hui Lam received his BA from University of California at Berkeley and his PhD in Physics from Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He has held postdoctoral positions at Fermilab and the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, and faculty positions at the University of Chicago and Fermilab. He was a recipient of the Outstanding Junior Investigator Award from the US Department of Energy, and was a finalist in the Blavatnik Award for Young Scientists. He is currently Professor of Physics at Columbia University.

Prof. Hui’s research interests include theoretical astrophysics, high energy physics, large scale structure and cosmology.

About the Program

For more information, please refer to the program website at http://iasprogram.ust.hk/particle_theory.