Gravitational wave sources containing massive black holes Original Research Article

Types of sources containing massive black holes (MBHs) that could be observed by the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) will be discussed. Probably the most likely type of source is compact stars or 5 to 10 M⊙ black holes (BHs) orbiting around roughly 105 to 107 M⊙ MBHs in galactic nuclei. Another perhaps observable type is the collapse of supermassive stars to form MBHs. Other possible sources are MBH-MBH binaries formed from multiple seed MBHs grown in galactic nuclei, or formed after galaxy mergers. It appears plausible, or even likely, that one or more of the above types of binaries containing MBHs can be detected and studied by LISA.