- Accepted Paper
Long-term 3+1 simulations of primordial black hole formation during radiation domination
Phys. Rev. D - Accepted 6 November, 2026
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/qxhc-twhp
Phys. Rev. D - Accepted 6 November, 2026
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/qxhc-twhp
We develop an efficient three-dimensional numerical-relativity framework for primordial black-hole (PBH) formation from superhorizon curvature perturbations in a radiation-dominated Universe. We implement flux-conservative relativistic hydrodynamics in the adaptive-mesh-refinement code GRChombo and introduce a cosmologically scaled Gamma-driver that allows the cosmic-time step to grow in proportion to the scale factor. For a representative long-term simulation, the scaled driver preserves the apparent-horizon mass evolution and constraint behavior while reducing the number of coarse-level advances by a factor of approximately relative to the standard driver. We also construct a conformal-time version of the moving-puncture gauge as a consistency check. Applying the framework to a spherical Gaussian curvature profile, we find a collapse threshold and approximate critical mass scaling, consistent with previous spherically symmetric results. We further fit the late-time PBH mass growth to the Zel’dovich–Novikov accretion law, demonstrating that the code can follow both near-critical collapse and long-term post-formation evolution in three dimensions. The framework provides a foundation for future studies of PBH formation beyond spherical symmetry.
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