Merging black holes in young star clusters

Searching for distinctive signatures, which characterize different formation channels of binary black holes (BBHs), is a crucial step towards the interpretation of current and future gravitationalwave detections. Here, we investigate the demography ofmerging BBHs in young star clusters (SCs), which are the nursery of massive stars. We performed 4 x 10(3) N-body simulations of SCs with metallicity Z = 0.002, initial binary fraction 0.4, and fractal initial conditions, to mimic the clumpiness of star-forming regions. Our simulations include a novel population-synthesis approach based on the code MOBSE. We find that SC dynamics does not affect the merger rate significantly, but leaves a strong fingerprint on the properties of merging BBHs. More than 50 per cent of merging BBHs in young SCs form by dynamical exchanges in the first few Myr. Dynamically formed merging BBHs are significantly heavier than merging BBHs in isolated binaries: merging BBHs with total mass up to similar to 120M(circle dot) form in young SCs, while the maximum total mass of merging BBHs in isolated binaries with the same metallicity is only similar to 70 M-circle dot. Merging BBHs born via dynamical exchanges tend to have smaller mass ratios than BBHs in isolated binaries. Furthermore, SC dynamics speeds up the merger: the delay time between star formation and coalescence is significantly shorter in young SCs. In our simulations, massive systems such as GW170729 form only via dynamical exchanges. Finally similar to 2 per cent of merging BBHs in young SCs have mass in the pair-instability mass gap (similar to 60-120 M-circle dot). This represents a unique fingerprint of merging BBHs in SCs.