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Black holes of small mass

Abstract

ANY star which has exhausted all of its nuclear fuel and which cannot eject sufficient matter so that its mass becomes less than roughly two solar masses, must undergo gravitational collapse to become a black hole. Thus one usually associates black holes with masses of stellar proportions. But it is possible that during the initial chaotic conditions of the Universe, black holes of much smaller mass1,2, down to 10−5 g, may have been formed. Here we suggest an experiment by which one may detect or set meaningful upper limits to the number density of black holes of small mass (hereinafter referred to as BHSM).

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BLAIR, D., CHANMUGAM, G., DRILLING, J. et al. Black holes of small mass. Nature 251, 204–205 (1974). https://doi.org/10.1038/251204a0

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