Accelerating massive galaxy formation with primordial black hole seed nuclei

Abstract

If massive primordial black holes (PBHs) exist and constitute a fraction of the dark matter, they can dramatically catalyze galaxy formation. By acting as pre-existing, high-density seeds, they can shorten the galaxy assembly time to as little as 100 Myr for up to 10^8 solar mass PBH seeds, allowing for the rapid formation of host halos. Furthermore, low surface brightness or diffuse galaxies may represent a natural outcome of this process, perhaps as the residue of halos seeded by smaller PBHs that failed to accrete a major baryonic component.