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  • Open Access

Resonant locking between binary systems induced by gravitational waves

Charlie Sharpe1, Yonadav Barry Ginat1, Zeyuan Xuan2,3, and Bence Kocsis1,4

  • 1Rudolf Peierls Centre for Theoretical Physics, University of Oxford, Clarendon Laboratory, Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3PU, United Kingdom
  • 2Department of Physics and Astronomy, UCLA, Los Angeles, California 90095, USA
  • 3Mani L. Bhaumik Institute for Theoretical Physics, UCLA, Los Angeles, California 90095, USA
  • 4St Hugh’s College, University of Oxford St Margaret’s Rd, Oxford OX2 6LE, United Kingdom

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Phys. Rev. D 113, 023040 – Published 21 January, 2026

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/nzrc-wvvp

Abstract

The interaction of gravitational waves (GWs) with matter is thought to be typically negligible in the Universe. We identify an exception in the case of resonant interactions, where GWs emitted by a background binary system, such as an inspiraling supermassive black hole (SMBH) binary, cause a resonant response in a stellar-mass foreground binary and the frequencies of the two systems become, and remain, synchronized. We point out that this previously unexplored dynamical phenomenon is not only possible, but can lead to O(30) binary systems becoming resonantly locked in the host galaxy of merging SMBHs of mass 108.5−11M⊙, each of which has a significantly reduced merger time. We predict O(1010) binary systems have been locked in the Universe’s history. Resonant locking could be detected through anomalous inspiral of binary systems.

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Phys. Rev. D 113, 023040– Published 21 January, 2026
  • Received 31 January 2025
  • Accepted 18 December 2025
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Published by the American Physical Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. Further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the published article’s title, journal citation, and DOI.

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