Relativistic orbits around spinning supermassive black holes: Secular evolution to 4.5 post-Newtonian order
Relativistic orbits around spinning supermassive black holes: Secular evolution to 4.5 post-Newtonian order
We derive the secular evolution of the orbital elements of a stellar-mass object orbiting a spinning massive black hole. We use the post-Newtonian (PN) approximation in harmonic coordinates, with test-body equations of motion for the conservative dynamics that are valid through 3PN order, including spin-orbit, quadrupole and ${(\mathrm{spin})}^{2}$ effects, and …