Yuri Levin

Email: yuri@cita.utoronto.ca

Research Summary

[ High Energy Astrophysics ]

Yuri Levin is interested astrophysics in the broadest sense and in the physics of gravitational-wave interferometers (e.g., LIGO). He has worked on thermal and quantum noises in LIGO, on the r-mode instability in rapidly rotating neutron stars, on the theory of type-I x-ray bursts, and on the stellar and gas dynamics around supermassive black holes. Currently, Levin is working on a new method of estimating the mass of the Galaxy and on the precession of neutron stars.

Research Projects:
(September 2002 - August 2003)

Young stellar disk in the galactic center

Together with Andrei Beloborodov (CITA/Columbia), Levin have analyzed the 3-dimensional velocity data for He-I stars in the Galactic center, and have argued for the existence of a stellar disc near SgrA*. Their finding was confirmed with a newer data by a group of Reinhard Genzel at MPI. Levin and Beloborodov have proposed that a dense accretion disc existed near Sga* a few million years ago, and that the He-I stars have condensed out of that disc.

Formation of massive stars in AGN discs

Levin has developed a theory of how massive stars may form at the outer edges of AGN discs. He has argued that mergers of the compact remnants of these massive stars with the supermassive black hole may be detectable by LISA.

Mass estimation in gravitating systems

Beloborodov and Levin have developed an ``orbital roulette'' method for estimating the mass of a gravitating body or more generally, for constraining the parameters of a gravitating potential. Their method, in its simplest form, is applicable when a number of the body's satellites is observed and a snapshot of their 3-dimensional positions and velocities is available. They have, however, found a way to generalize it to the case when some of the velocity components are not measured. The method may be relevant for the upcoming Space Interferometry Mission.

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