| In this thesis, I explore the connection between the old, dense systems known as globular clusters and the mergers of binary black holes detectable by the new generation of gravitational-wave observatories. Because of the stellar metallicities and long inspiral times, globular clusters are veritable factories for heavy black holes binaries such as GW150914, the gravitational-wave source recently detected by Advanced LIGO. In Chapter 2, I use a series of pre-existing dynamical models of globular clusters, which include all the relevant gravitational physics and detailed prescriptions for single and binary stellar evolution, to show that Advanced LIGO could potentially detect between 10 and 100 merging binary black holes per year. In Chapter 3, I create new cluster models with upgraded prescriptions for the evolution of massive stars, allowing me to fully characterize the properties of dynamically-formed black hole binaries and to compare their merger rates to those studied from galactic fields. In Chapter 4, I use these models to better understand the recent discovery of GW150914. I show that the masses and merger rates of black holes from globular clusters are consistent with the observation of GW150914, and I discuss various formation channels for such a binary from a dense stellar environment. Finally, in Chapter 5, I describe a new numerical technique for modeling black holes in dense star clusters. |
