Dynamics of spinning particles in Reissner-Nordström black hole exterior

Abstract We study the orbits of a spinning particle in the Reissner-Nordström black hole exterior through the spin-curvature coupling to leading order in its spin. The dynamics is governed by the Mathisson-Papapetrou equations in the pole-dipole approximation. The equations of motion can be derived and show in particular that in the polar coordinate, the orbits can be restricted to the plane for an aligned spin with the orbital motion, but there is an induced motion out of the plane for a misaligned spin. The radial potential can be defined from the equation of motion along the radial direction, where the roots are studied to construct the parameter space diagram for different types of orbits. We then consider the so-called innermost stable circular orbit (ISCO) due to the triple root to see the effects of the particle spin and the black hole charge. These non-geodesic equations can be solved analytically in terms of the Mino time with the solutions involving Jacobi elliptic functions. One of the bound motions considered is an oscillating orbit between two turning points in the radial direction. The usefulness of the solutions is to obtain the periods of the oscillation along the radial direction as well as the induced motion in the polar coordinate for a misaligned spin in both the Mino time and the coordinate time. Another interesting motions include the inspiral orbit from near ISCO and the homoclinic orbit with the solutions expressed as elementary functions, giving the radial 4-velocity of the inspiral orbit and the Lyapunov exponent associated with the homoclinic orbit. The implications for gravitational wave emission from extreme mass-ratio inspirals (EMRIs) and black hole accretion are discussed.