Speaker
Description
Observed rates of Tidal Disruption Events (TDEs) can be used to probe the mass function of intermediate mass and massive black holes (MBHs), which in turn contains crucial information on the origin and evolution of these objects. In our latest work, we use semi-analytical codes of galaxy formation - encompassing different astrophysical models of MBH formation and growth - to obtain the rates of detectable TDEs in current and near-future facilities. In this talk I will outline our main findings, showing how TDEs observations can crucially help us distinguish between different MBH seeding mechanisms. I will present the bounds that can be placed on the MBH formation models with TDEs data from ZTF, and discuss forecasts for LSST and ULTRASAT observations. I will also discuss the role of TDE accretion as a channel for MBH growth, and how the inclusion of this additional channel impacts the expected MBH mass function.
