How do accretion disks around supermassive black holes produce intense radiation?

Accretion disks around supermassive black holes produce intense radiation primarily through the conversion of gravitational potential energy into heat and light as matter spirals inward.12

Because the infalling material possesses angular momentum, it cannot fall directly into the black hole. Instead, it forms a disk where turbulence and viscosity act as a form of friction. This friction causes the material to lose energy and angular momentum, driving it to spiral toward the center.12

As the material loses this energy, it becomes extremely hot, reaching temperatures of up to several million kelvins. This intense heat is radiated away from both sides of the disk, producing emissions that span from infrared to X-ray wavelengths. In some cases, parts of the disk may evaporate to form a low-density corona that emits even higher-energy, "hard" X-rays. This process is so efficient that it powers the most energetic objects in the universe, including quasars and other active galactic nuclei.12