Electromagnetic alignment and jet precession around supermassive black holes: Quasi-periodic oscillations in tidal disruption events
Abstract
We evaluate quasi-periodic oscillations and jet formation in tidal disruption events using the covariant formulation of electromagnetic angular-momentum transfer. General-relativistic frame-dragging tears apart misaligned transient accretion flows, forming an isolated inner mini-disk. The accumulation of magnetic flux on the event horizon powers a relativistic jet via the Blandford-Znajek mechanism. Because the magnetic field anchors to the precessing mini-disk, the jet axis rotates, generating geometric modulations in the observed X-ray and radio fluxes. To ensure physical consistency with the force-free magnetosphere required to launch a Blandford-Znajek jet, we model the electromagnetic back-reaction using a split-monopole magnetic field topology. By performing a small-spin expansion of the Noether current density over the event horizon, we derive a closed-form analytical reaction torque exerted by the electromagnetic field on the accretion plasma. We evaluate the resulting kinematics to show that the electromagnetic back-reaction induces a retrograde precession of the mini-disk, coupling with the prograde Lense-Thirring precession to dictate the global oscillation frequency. We formulate explicit predictions for observable transient signals and predict a monotonic attenuation of the peak-to-trough flux ratio as the mini-disk aligns, as well as a specific frequency drift signature characterized by an initial lengthening followed by an asymptotic shortening of the time interval between consecutive flares. We establish an analytical mechanism where magnetic flux depletion stalls alignment, predicting a constant residual modulation amplitude at late times. We formulate a methodology to extract the black hole spin and the magnetic flux density directly from the temporal derivatives of this predicted frequency drift, operating independently of spectral continuum fitting.
Related
- The macroscopic precession model of quasiperiodic oscillations for rotating compact objects
- The chirping of Lense-Thirring precession in tidal disruption event accretion flows
- Tidal Disruption of Blanets by Supermassive Black Holes: From Test Particles to Planetary-Mass Bodies in Kerr Spacetime
- Electromagnetic Emission and Orbital Evolution of Eccentric Supermassive Black Hole Binaries in Retrograde Disks
- Electromagnetic signatures of gradual magnetic dissipation in jets from supermassive black holes
BibTeX
@misc{amaroseoane2026electromagnetic,
title = {{Electromagnetic alignment and jet precession around supermassive black holes: Quasi-periodic oscillations in tidal disruption events}},
author = {Pau Amaro-Seoane and Leif Lui and Alejandro Torres-Orjuela and Xian Chen},
howpublished = {arXiv},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.48550/arxiv.2609.05350},
eprint = {2609.05350},
archivePrefix = {arXiv},
url = {https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.05350},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - Electromagnetic alignment and jet precession around supermassive black holes: Quasi-periodic oscillations in tidal disruption events
AU - Pau Amaro-Seoane
AU - Leif Lui
AU - Alejandro Torres-Orjuela
AU - Xian Chen
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/04
PB - arXiv
DO - 10.48550/arxiv.2609.05350
UR - https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.05350
AB - We evaluate quasi-periodic oscillations and jet formation in tidal disruption events using the covariant formulation of electromagnetic angular-momentum transfer. General-relativistic frame-dragging tears apart misaligned transient accretion flows, forming an isolated inner mini-disk. The accumulation of magnetic flux on the event horizon powers a relativistic jet via the Blandford-Znajek mechanism. Because the magnetic field anchors to the precessing mini-disk, the jet axis rotates, generating geometric modulations in the observed X-ray and radio fluxes. To ensure physical consistency with the force-free magnetosphere required to launch a Blandford-Znajek jet, we model the electromagnetic back-reaction using a split-monopole magnetic field topology. By performing a small-spin expansion of the Noether current density over the event horizon, we derive a closed-form analytical reaction torque exerted by the electromagnetic field on the accretion plasma. We evaluate the resulting kinematics to show that the electromagnetic back-reaction induces a retrograde precession of the mini-disk, coupling with the prograde Lense-Thirring precession to dictate the global oscillation frequency. We formulate explicit predictions for observable transient signals and predict a monotonic attenuation of the peak-to-trough flux ratio as the mini-disk aligns, as well as a specific frequency drift signature characterized by an initial lengthening followed by an asymptotic shortening of the time interval between consecutive flares. We establish an analytical mechanism where magnetic flux depletion stalls alignment, predicting a constant residual modulation amplitude at late times. We formulate a methodology to extract the black hole spin and the magnetic flux density directly from the temporal derivatives of this predicted frequency drift, operating independently of spectral continuum fitting.
ER -