Probing Massive Black Hole Binary Populations with LISA

Understand

ESA and NASA are moving forward with plans to launch LISA around 2034.

• With data from the Illustris cosmological simulation, we provide analysis of LISA detection rates accompanied by characterization of the merging massive black hole population.
• Massive black holes of total mass $\sim10^5-10^{10} M_\odot$ are the focus of this study.
• We evolve Illustris massive black hole mergers, which form at separations on the order of the simulation resolution ($\sim$kpc scales), through coalescence with two different treatments for the binary massive black hole evolutionary process.