• Accepted Paper

Conformal-mapping method for horizon multipoles in numerical relativity: Implementation, Kerr validation, and applications beyond axisymmetry

Yeong-Bok Bae, Young-Hwan Hyun, and Gungwon Kang

Phys. Rev. D - Accepted 9 November, 2026

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/bdhs-3qt4

Abstract

We present a numerical method that constructs geometrically defined coordinates on black-hole horizons, from which the multipole moments are computed without assuming axisymmetry. This method, which we denote the conformal-mapping method (CMM), provides a numerical realization of the conformal construction proposed by Ashtekar et al. in 2022, combining discrete Ricci flow, spectral embedding onto the unit sphere, and Mobius gauge fixing by the vanishing-area-dipole condition. We first test the CMM against analytic Kerr benchmarks, and then apply it to an equal-mass, non-spinning binary black-hole merger. We also compare it with an approximate-symmetry-based method. The CMM allows the multipole moments to be expressed in a fixed reference frame, whereas the symmetry-adapted frame can reorient abruptly when the preferred approximate axis changes. In a frame aligned with the orbital angular momentum, the amplitude of the quadrupole mode grows during inspiral and decays after merger, displaying a qualitative ringdown behavior. These results show that the CMM is a useful tool for studying horizon geometry in dynamical situations where no stable symmetry axis is available.

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