Browsing by Subject "quasars:"
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Item Adaptive Optics Imaging Of Quasi-Stellar Objects With Double-Peaked Narrow Lines: Are They Dual Active Galactic Nuclei?(2011-09) Rosario, D. J.; McGurk, R. C.; Max, C. E.; Shields, Gregory A.; Smith, K. L.; Ammons, S. M.; Shields, Gregory A.; Smith, K. L.Active galaxies hosting two accreting and merging supermassive black holes (SMBHs)-dual active galactic nuclei (AGNs)-are predicted by many current and popular models of black-hole-galaxy co-evolution. We present here the results of a program that has identified a set of probable dual AGN candidates based on near-infrared laser guide star adaptive optics imaging with the Keck II telescope. These candidates are selected from a complete sample of radio-quiet quasi-stellar objects (QSOs) drawn from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS), which show double-peaked narrow AGN emission lines. Of the 12 AGNs imaged, we find 6 with double galaxy structure, of which four are in galaxy mergers. We measure the ionization of the two velocity components in the narrow AGN lines to test the hypothesis that both velocity components come from an active nucleus. The combination of a well-defined parent sample and high-quality imaging allows us to place constraints on the fraction of SDSS QSOs that host dual accreting black holes separated on kiloparsec scales: similar to 0.3%-0.65%. We derive from this fraction the time spent in a QSO phase during a typical merger and find a value that is much lower than estimates that arise from QSO space densities and galaxy merger statistics. We discuss possible reasons for this difference. Finally, we compare the SMBH mass distributions of single and dual AGNs and find little difference between the two within the limited statistics of our program, hinting that most SMBH growth happens in the later stages of a merger process.Item Black Hole Mass And Eddington Ratio Distribution Functions Of X-Ray-Selected Broad-Line AGNs At Z Similar To 1.4 In The Subaru XMM-Newton Deep Field(2012-12) Nobuta, K.; Akiyama, M.; Ueda, Y.; Watson, M. G.; Silverman, J.; Hiroi, K.; Ohta, K.; Iwamuro, F.; Yabe, K.; Tamura, N.; Moritani, Y.; Sumiyoshi, M.; Takato, N.; Kimura, M.; Maihara, T.; Dalton, G.; Lewis, I.; Bonfield, D.; Lee, H.; Curtis-Lake, E.; Macaulay, E.; Clarke, F.; Sekiguchi, K.; Simpson, C.; Croom, S.; Ouchi, Masami; Hanami, H.; Yamada, T.; Lee, H.In order to investigate the growth of supermassive black holes (SMBHs), we construct the black hole mass function (BHMF) and Eddington ratio distribution function (ERDF) of X-ray-selected broad-line active galactic nuclei (AGNs) at z similar to 1.4 in the Subaru XMM-Newton Deep Survey (SXDS) field. A significant part of the accretion growth of SMBHs is thought to take place in this redshift range. Black hole masses of X-ray-selected broad-line AGNs are estimated using the width of the broad Mg II line and 3000 angstrom monochromatic luminosity. We supplement the Mg II FWHM values with the H alpha FWHM obtained from our NIR spectroscopic survey. Using the black hole masses of broad-line AGNs at redshifts between 1.18 and 1.68, the binned broad-line AGN BHMFs and ERDFs are calculated using the V-max method. To properly account for selection effects that impact the binned estimates, we derive the corrected broad-line AGN BHMFs and ERDFs by applying the maximum likelihood method, assuming that the ERDF is constant regardless of the black hole mass. We do not correct for the non-negligible uncertainties in virial BH mass estimates. If we compare the corrected broad-line AGN BHMF with that in the local universe, then the corrected BHMF at z = 1.4 has a higher number density above 10(8) M-circle dot but a lower number density below that mass range. The evolution may be indicative of a downsizing trend of accretion activity among the SMBH population. The evolution of broad-line AGN ERDFs from z = 1.4 to 0 indicates that the fraction of broad-line AGNs with accretion rates close to the Eddington limit is higher at higher redshifts.Item The Black Hole Mass-Stellar Velocity Dispersion Relationship For Quasars In The Sloan Digital Sky Survey Data Release 7(2013-02) Salviander, Sarah; Shields, Gregory A.; Salviander, Sarah; Shields, Gregory A.We assess evolution in the M-BH-sigma(*) relationship for quasars in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey Data Release 7 for the redshift range 0.1 < z < 1.2. We estimate the black hole mass, M-BH, using the "photoionization method," with the broad H beta or Mg II emission line and the quasar continuum luminosity. For the stellar velocity dispersion, we use the narrow [O III] or [O II] emission line as a surrogate. This study is a follow-up to an earlier study in which we investigated evolution in the M-BH-sigma(*) relationship in quasars from Data Release 3. The greatly increased number of quasars in our new sample has allowed us to break our lower-redshift subsample into black hole mass bins and probe the M-BH-sigma(*) relationship for constant black hole mass. The M-BH-sigma(*) relationship for the highest-mass (M-BH > 10(9.0) M-circle dot) and lowest-mass (M-BH < 10(7.5) M-circle dot) black holes appears to evolve significantly; however, most or all of this apparent evolution can be accounted for by various observational biases due to intrinsic scatter in the relationship and to uncertainties in observed quantities. The M-BH-sigma(*) relationship for black holes in the middle mass range (10(7.5) < M-BH < 10(9.0) M-circle dot) shows minimal change with redshift. The overall results suggest a limit of +/-0.2 dex on any evolution in the M-BH-sigma(*) relationship for quasars out to z approximate to 1 compared with the relationship observed in the local universe. Intrinsic scatter may also provide a plausible way to reconcile the wide range of results of several different studies of the black hole-galaxy relationships.Item Dissipation and Extra Light in Galactic Nuclei. III. "Core" Ellipticals and "Missing" Light(2009-04) Hopkins, Philip F.; Lauer, Tod R.; Cox, Thomas J.; Hernquist, Lars; Kormendy, John; Kormendy, JohnWe investigate how "extra" or "excess" central light in the surface brightness profiles of cusp or power-law elliptical galaxies relates to the profiles of ellipticals with cores. The envelopes of cusp ellipticals are established by violent relaxation in mergers acting on stars present in gas-rich progenitor disks, while their centers are structured by the relics of dissipational, compact starbursts. Ellipticals with cores are formed by the subsequent merging of the now gas-poor cusp ellipticals, with the fossil starburst components combining to preserve a dense, compact component in these galaxies as well ( although mixing of stars smooths the transition from the outer to inner components in the profiles). By comparing extensive hydrodynamical simulations to observed profiles spanning a broad mass range, we show how to observationally isolate and characterize the relic starburst component in core ellipticals. Our method recovers the younger starburst population, demonstrating that these dense concentrations survive spheroid-spheroid mergers and reflect the degree of dissipation in the initial mergers that formed the penultimate galaxy progenitors. The degree of dissipation in the mergers that produced the cusp ellipticals is a strong function of stellar mass, roughly tracing the observed gas fractions of disks of the same mass over redshifts z similar to 0-2. The strength of this component strongly correlates with effective radius at fixed mass: systems with more dissipation are more compact, sufficient to explain the discrepancy in the maximum phase-space densities of ellipticals and their progenitor spirals. The survival of this component together with scattering of stars into the envelope in re-mergers naturally explain the high-Sersic index profile shapes characteristic of very massive core ellipticals. This is also closely related to the kinematics and isophotal shapes: only systems with matched starburst components from their profile fits also reproduce the observed kinematics of boxy/core ellipticals. The final "core-scouring" phase of core Formation occurs when a black hole binary formed in the merger scatters stars out of the innermost regions of the extra-light component. It is therefore critical to adopt a physically motivated profile decomposition that accounts for the fossil starburst component when attempting to quantify scouring. We show that estimates of the scoured mass that employ single-component forms fitted to the entire galaxy profile can be strongly biased.Item Spatially Resolved Spectroscopy of SDSS J0952+2552: A Confirmed Dual Active Galactic Nucleus(2011-09) McGurk, R. C.; Max, C. E.; Rosario, D. J.; Shields, G. A.; Smith, K. L.; Wright, S. A.; Shields, G. A.; Smith, K. L.Most massive galaxies contain supermassive black holes (SMBHs) in their cores. When galaxies merge, gas is driven to nuclear regions and can accrete onto the central black hole. Thus, one expects to see dual active galactic nuclei (AGNs) in a fraction of galaxy mergers. Candidates for galaxies containing dual AGNs have been identified by the presence of double-peaked narrow [O III] emission lines and by high spatial resolution images of close galaxy pairs. Spatially resolved spectroscopy is needed to confirm these galaxy pairs as systems with spatially separated double SMBHs. With the Keck 2 Laser Guide Star Adaptive Optics system and the OH Suppressing InfraRed Imaging Spectrograph near-infrared integral field spectrograph, we obtained spatially resolved spectra for SDSS J09527.62+255257.2, a radio-quiet quasar shown by previous imaging to consist of a galaxy and its close (1.'' 0) companion. We find that the main galaxy is a Type 1 AGN with both broad and narrow AGN emission lines in its spectrum, while the companion galaxy is a Type 2 AGN with narrow emission lines only. The two AGNs are separated by 4.8 kpc, and their redshifts correspond to those of the double peaks of the [O I] emission line seen in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey spectrum. Line diagnostics indicate that both components of the double emission lines are due to AGN photoionization. These results confirm that J0952+2552 contains two spatially separated AGNs. As one of the few confirmed dual AGNs at an intermediate separation of < 10 kpc, this system offers a unique opportunity to study galaxy mergers and their effect on black hole growth.