Time-Domain Signatures of Supermassive Black Hole Binaries

Modern observational techniques and technologies are insufficient for identifying sub-parsec separation supermassive black hole (SMBH) binaries, despite their paramount importance to the evolution of SMBHs and the galaxies which host them. Current methods focus on identifying multiple absorption lines in AGN jets or spectrally distinct Broad Line Regions, but these are still unable to probe the extremely close separations relevant to gravitational wave explorations. In this talk, we focus on the potential for time-domain identification of sub-parsec SMBH binaries. We use hydrodynamics simulations of a close-separation, low mass-ratio (q << 1) SMBH binary to explore the characteristic frequencies with which optical, UV, and X-ray emissions will vary in these sources. This talk will detail the methods employed in these simulations and their analysis and will present preliminary results demonstrating proof-of-concept for time-domain SMBH binary identification.