X-ray and infrared diagnostics of nearby active galactic nuclei with MAXI and AKARI

Abstract

Abstract Nearby active galactic nuclei were diagnosed in the X-ray and mid-to-far infrared wavelengths with Monitor of All-sky X-ray Image (MAXI) and the Japanese infrared observatory AKARI, respectively. One hundred of the X-ray sources listed in the second release of the MAXI all-sky X-ray source catalog are currently identified as non-blazar-type active galactic nuclei. These include 95 Seyfert galaxies and 5 quasars, and they are composed of 73 type-1 and 27 type-2 objects. The AKARI all-sky survey point source catalog was searched for their mid- and far-infrared counterparts at 9, 18, and 90 μm. As a result, 69 Seyfert galaxies in the MAXI catalog (48 type-1 and 21 type-2) were found to be detected with AKARI. The X-ray (3–4 keV and 4–10 keV) and infrared luminosities of these objects were investigated, together with their color information. Adopting the canonical photon index, Γ = 1.9, of the intrinsic X-ray spectrum of the Seyfert galaxies, the X-ray hardness ratio between the 3–4 and 4–10 keV ranges derived with MAXI was roughly converted into the absorption column density. After the X-ray luminosity was corrected for absorption from the estimated column density, the well-known X-ray-to-infrared luminosity correlation was confirmed, at least in the Compton-thin regime. In contrast, NGC 1365, the only Compton-thick object in the MAXI catalog, was found to deviate from the correlation toward a significantly lower X-ray luminosity by nearly an order of magnitude. It was verified that the relation between the X-ray hardness below 10 keV and X-ray-to-infrared color acts as an effective tool to pick up Compton-thick objects. The difference in the infrared colors between the type-1 and type-2 Seyfert galaxies and its physical implication on the classification and unification of active galactic nuclei are briefly discussed.