Scientists Recreate Shining, Spinning Ring Around Black Holes In Lab

The research is important because it will help scientists find how black holes grow, and how stars are formed from collapsing matter.

Scientists have recreated the accretion disk of black holes, which is a shining, spinning ring, inside a laboratory. The ring is a disk of plasma, and is not only similar to accretion disks, but also to disks around forming stars. The study, conducted by Imperial College London researchers, was recently published in the journal Physical Review Letters. 

The research is important because it will help scientists find how black holes grow, and how stars are formed from collapsing matter, a statement released by Imperial College London said. 

All matter approaching a black hole is heated up, and becomes plasma, which is the fourth state of matter and consists of charged ions and free electrons. The plasma around a black hole also rotates.

The hot disk of gas orbiting a black hole, and the main source of light for the massive cosmic object, is called the accretion disk. Accretion is the phenomenon of black holes consuming matter to grow. 

Due to the rotation of the accretion disk, a centrifugal force (outward force) pushes the plasma outwards. But the gravity of the black hole pulling the plasma in balances the centrifugal force. 

According to Imperial College London, a question arises that how a black hole grows if the material is stuck in orbit rather than falling into the black hole. A theory states that instabilities in magnetic fields in the plasma result in friction. This causes the plasma to lose energy and fall into the black hole. 

This theory is tested using liquid metals that can be spun, and observing what happens when magnetic fields are applied. But these models are not a true representation of free-flowing plasma because the metals are contained within pipes. 

As part of the new study, the researchers used their Mega Ampere Generator for Plasma Implosion Experiments (MAGPIE) machine to spin plasma in a way that it serves as a more accurate representation of accretion disks. 

Quoting Dr Vicente Valenzuela-Villaseca, the first author on the paper, the statement said understanding how accretion disks behave will not only help researchers reveal how black holes grow, but also reveal how gas clouds collapse to form stars. 

The researchers accelerated eight plasma jets and collided them using the MAGPIE machine. As a result of the collision, a spinning column was formed. 

The team found that the inside region of the spinning ring was moving faster than the outside portion. This is an important characteristic of accretion disks, the statement said. 

Dr Valenzuela-Villaseca said that these experiments will allow researchers to test their theories and see if they match astronomical observations.