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Multimessenger Detection of Black Hole Binaries in Dark Matter Spikes

Fani Dosopoulou1,* and Joseph Silk2,3

  • *Contact author: dosopoulouf@cardiff.ac.uk
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Phys. Rev. Lett. 135, 081401 – Published 19 August, 2025

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/hysg-5273

Abstract

We investigate the inspiral of a high mass-ratio black hole binary located in the nucleus of a galaxy, where the primary central black hole is surrounded by a dense dark matter spike formed through accretion during the black hole growth phase. Within this spike, dark matter undergoes strong self-annihilation, producing a compact source of γ-ray radiation that is highly sensitive to spike density, while the binary emits gravitational waves at frequencies detectable by LISA. As the inspiraling binary interacts with the surrounding dark matter particles, it alters the density of the spike, thereby influencing the γ-ray flux from dark matter annihilation. We demonstrate that the spike self-annihilation luminosity decreases by 10% to 90% of its initial value, depending on the initial density profile and binary mass ratio, as the binary sweeps through the LISA band. This presents a new opportunity to indirectly probe dark matter through multimessenger observations of galactic nuclei.

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Phys. Rev. Lett. 135, 081401– Published 19 August, 2025
  • Received 20 February 2025
  • Revised 10 June 2025
  • Accepted 29 July 2025
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