{
  "abstract": "Dormant black holes (dormant BHs, i.e., X-ray quiet binaries comprising a BH and a companion star) are probes of the effect of cluster dynamics and binary stellar evolution on compact-object binaries. A dozen dormant BH binaries are known, a number that will increase substantially with the upcoming Gaia Data Release 4 (DR4). Their origin is uncertain, and dynamical formation is proposed as one possible channel. Here, we study the formation of dormant BHs in low-mass star clusters, accounting for the interplay of binary stellar evolution and cluster dynamics. We present new simulations with the $N$-body code PeTar, interfaced with the population synthesis code SEVN for single and binary star evolution. Our grid spans a range of cluster masses ($300-4800\\,$M$_\\odot$), metallicities ($1.4\\times10^{-2}$, $1.4\\times10^{-4}$), and natal kick models (with and without fallback). We find that almost all dormant BH binaries escape the parent cluster within $\\sim1\\,$Gyr ($\\sim10\\,$Myr) when assuming weak (strong) natal kicks. Most ($73\\%$) dormant BHs form via the exchange of a BH (or its progenitor star) into a stellar binary, or of a star into a binary with a BH. Dormant BHs in low-mass clusters have a wide orbital period distribution (from a few hours to $10^8\\,$d), with an upper limit set by natal kicks, a bimodal eccentricity distribution (a first peak at zero eccentricity for circularised systems and a second at high eccentricity), and stellar masses that follow the (evolved) initial mass function. Large BH masses are a smoking gun of dynamical formation, via exchanges and stellar collisions. We expect Gaia DR4 to contain $\\sim1-64$ high-metallicity and $\\sim0.4-48$ low-metallicity dormant BHs, with a period distribution peaking at $\\sim10^3\\,$d, $\\gtrsim90\\%$ of them with eccentricity $e>0.1$, and $\\sim20\\%$ with large BH masses ($m_{\\rm BH} \\gtrsim 30\\,$M$_\\odot$).",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [],
  "article_type": null,
  "arxiv": "2610.18601",
  "author_total": 4,
  "authors": [
    {
      "name": "Daniel Marín Pina"
    },
    {
      "name": "Michela Mapelli"
    },
    {
      "name": "Giuliano Iorio"
    },
    {
      "name": "Cecilia Sgalletta"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/10zrh5gstp7cz.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.48550/arxiv.2610.18601",
  "fulltext_url": null,
  "id": "10zrh5gstp7cz",
  "issns": [],
  "landing_url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/2610.18601",
  "language": null,
  "licence": "CC-BY-NC-SA-4.0",
  "licence_label": "CC BY-NC-SA 4.0",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": "CC0-1.0",
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "arxiv",
      "astro-ph.GA"
    ],
    [
      "arxiv",
      "astro-ph.SR"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "3103|Stellar, planetary, and galactic studies"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7221762445",
  "pdf_url": "https://arxiv.org/pdf/2610.18601",
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-10-13",
  "publisher": null,
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/10zrh5gstp7cz.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:29:11Z",
      "native_id": "2610.18601",
      "source": "arxiv",
      "url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/2610.18601"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "astronomy",
      "origin": "arxiv:astro-ph.GA",
      "subfield": "galaxies"
    },
    {
      "field": "astronomy",
      "origin": "arxiv:astro-ph.SR",
      "subfield": "stellar"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Dynamical formation of dormant black holes: Predictions for Gaia DR4",
  "title_text": "Dynamical formation of dormant black holes: Predictions for Gaia DR4",
  "type": "preprint",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:29:11Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/10zrh5gstp7cz",
  "venue": "arXiv",
  "versions": []
}