Active Galactic Nuclei In Galaxies Research Articles

The miniJPAS Survey: The radial distribution of star formation rates in faint X-ray active galactic nuclei

We study the impact of black hole nuclear activity on both the global and radial star formation rate (SFR) profiles in X-ray-selected active galactic nuclei (AGN) in the field of miniJPAS, the precursor of the much wider J-PAS project. Our sample includes 32 AGN with $z<0.3$ detected via the XMM-Newton and Chandra surveys. For comparison, we assembled a control sample of 71 star-forming (SF) galaxies with similar magnitudes, sizes, and redshifts. To derive the global properties of both the AGN and the control SF sample, we used CIGALE to fit the spectral energy distributions derived from the 56 narrowband and 4 broadband filters from miniJPAS. We find that AGN tend to reside in more massive galaxies than their SF counterparts. After matching samples based on stellar mass and comparing their SFRs and specific SFRs (sSFRs), no significant differences appear. This suggests that the presence of AGN does not strongly influence overall star formation. However, when we used miniJPAS as an integral field unit (IFU) to dissect galaxies along their position angle, a different picture emerges. We find that AGN tend to be more centrally concentrated in mass with respect to SF galaxies. Moreover, we find a suppression of the sSFR up to 1R$ _e $ and then an enhancement beyond 1R$ _e $, strongly contrasting with the decreasing radial profile of sSFRs in SF galaxies. This could point to an inside-out quenching of AGN host galaxies. Additionally, we examined how the radial profiles of the sSFRs in AGN and SF galaxies depend on galaxy morphology, by dividing our sample into disk-dominated (DD), pseudo-bulge (PB), and bulge-dominated (BD) systems. In DD systems, AGN exhibit a flat sSFR profile in the central regions and enhanced star formation beyond 1R$ _e $, contrasting with SF galaxies. In PB systems, SF galaxies show a decreasing sSFR profile, while AGN hosts exhibit an inside-out quenching scenario. In BD systems, both populations demonstrate consistent flat sSFR profiles. These findings suggest that the reason we do not see differences on a global scale is because star formation is suppressed in the central regions and enhanced in the outer regions of AGN host galaxies. While limited in terms of sample size, this work highlights the potential of the upcoming J-PAS as a wide-field low-resolution IFU for thousands of nearby galaxies and AGN.

Comparative analysis of the SFR of AGN and non-AGN galaxies, as a function of stellar mass, AGN power, cosmic time, and obscuration

This study involves a comparative analysis of the star formation rates (SFRs) of active galactic nucleus (AGN) galaxies and non-AGN galaxies and of the SFRs of type 1 and 2 AGNs. To carry out this investigation, we assembled a dataset consisting of 2677 X-ray AGNs detected by the XMM-Newton observatory and a control sample of 64 556 galaxies devoid of AGNs. We generated spectral energy distributions (SEDs) for these objects using photometric data from the DES, VHS, and AllWISE surveys, and we harnessed the CIGALE code to extract measurements for the (host) galaxy properties. Our dataset encompasses a diverse parameter space, with objects spanning a range of stellar masses from 9.5 < log [M*(M⊙)] < 12.0, intrinsic X-ray luminosities within 42 < log[LX,2−10 keV(erg s−1)] < 45.5, and redshifts between 0.3 < z < 2.5. To compare SFRs, we calculated the SFRnorm parameter, which signifies the ratio of the SFR of an AGN galaxy to the SFR of non-AGN galaxies sharing similar M* and redshift. Our analysis reveals that systems hosting an AGN tend to exhibit elevated SFRs compared to non-AGN galaxies, particularly beyond a certain threshold in LX. Notably, this threshold increases as we move toward more massive galaxies. Additionally, for AGN systems with the same LX, the magnitude of the SFRnorm decreases as we consider more massive galaxies. This suggests that in galaxies with an AGN, the increase in SFR as a function of stellar mass is not as prominent as in galaxies without an AGN. This interpretation finds support in the shallower slope that we identify in the X-ray star-forming main sequence in contrast to the galaxy main sequence. Employing CIGALE’s measurements, we classified AGNs into type 1 and type 2. In our investigation, we focused on a subset of 652 type 1 AGNs and 293 type 2 AGNs within the stellar mass range of 10.5 < log[M (M⊙)] < 11.5. Based on our results, type 1 AGNs display higher SFRs than type 2 AGNs, at redshifts below z < 1. However, at higher redshifts, the SFRs of the two AGN populations tend to be similar. At redshifts z < 1, type 1 AGNs show augmented SFRs in comparison to non-AGN galaxies. In contrast, type 2 AGNs exhibit lower SFRs when compared to galaxies that do not host an AGN, at least up to log[LX,2−10 keV(erg s−1)] < 45.

A population of Optically Quiescent Quasars from WISE and SDSS

ABSTRACT The growth of active galactic nuclei (AGNs) occurs under some form of obscuration in a large fraction of the population. The difficulty in constraining this population leads to high uncertainties in cosmic X-ray background and galaxy evolution models. Using an SDSS–WISE cross-match, we target infrared luminous AGN (W1 − W2 > 0.8, and monochromatic rest-frame luminosity above λLλ(12 μm) ≈ 3 × 1044 erg s−1), but with passive galaxy-like optical spectra (Optically Quiescent Quasars; OQQs). We find 47 objects that show no significant [O iii]λ5007 emission, a typically strong AGN optical emission line. As a comparison sample, we examine SDSS-selected Type 2 quasars (QSO2s), which show a significant [O iii]λ5007 line by definition. We find a 1:16 ratio of OQQs compared to QSO2s, suggesting that the OQQ duty cycle is likely much shorter than that of QSO2s (though selection biases are not fully quantified). We consider observed properties in comparison with other galaxy types, and examine them for consistency with theories on their intrinsic nature: chiefly (a) a high covering factor for surrounding obscuring matter, preventing the detection of high-ionisation emission lines – ‘cocooned AGN’; or (b) ionized gas being absent on the kpc scales of the Narrow Line Region (NLR), perhaps due to a ‘switching on’ or ‘young’ AGN. OQQs do not obviously fit the standard paradigm for merger-driven AGN and host galaxy evolution, implying we may be missing part of the flow of AGN evolution.

A versatile classification tool for galactic activity using optical and infrared colors

Context.The overwhelming majority of diagnostic tools for galactic activity are focused mainly on the classes of active galaxies. Passive or dormant galaxies are often excluded from these diagnostics, which usually employ emission-line features (e.g., forbidden emission lines). Thus, most of them focus on specific types of activity or only on one activity class, for example active galactic nucleus (AGN) galaxiesAims.In this work we used infrared and optical colors to build an all-inclusive galactic activity diagnostic tool that can discriminate between star-forming, AGN, low-ionization nuclear emission-line region, composite, and passive galaxies, and which can be used in local and low-redshift galaxies.Methods.We used the random forest algorithm to define a new activity diagnostic tool. As the ground truth for the training of the algorithm, we considered galaxies that have been classified based on their optical spectral lines. We explored classification criteria based on infrared colors from the first three WISE bands (bands 1, 2, and 3) supplemented with optical colors from theu, g, andrSDSS bands. From them, we sought the combination with the minimum number of colors that provides optimal results. Furthermore, to mitigate biases related to aperture effects, we introduced a new WISE photometric scheme that combines apertures of different sizes.Results.Using machine learning methods, we developed a diagnostic tool that accommodates both active and passive galaxies under one unified classification scheme using just three colors. We find that the combination ofW1-W2, W2-W3, and g-r colors offers a good performance, while the broad availability of these colors for a large number of galaxies ensures it can be applied to large galaxy samples. The overall accuracy is ~81%, and the achieved completeness for each class is ~81% for star-forming, ~56% for AGN, ~68% for LINER, ~65% for composite, and ~85% for passive galaxies.Conclusions.Our diagnostic represents a significant improvement over existing infrared diagnostics because it includes all types of active galaxies, as well as passive galaxies, extending their application to the local Universe. The inclusion of the optical colors improves its ability to identify low-luminosity AGN galaxies, which are generally confused with star-forming galaxies, and helps us identify cases of starbursts with extreme mid-infrared colors that mimic obscured AGN galaxies, a well-known problem for most infrared diagnostics.

Link between star formation and the properties of supermassive black holes

It is well known that supermassive black holes (SMBHs) and their host galaxies undergo a process of co-evolution. Feedback from active galactic nuclei (AGNs) plays an important role in this symbiosis. To study the effect of AGN feedback on the host galaxy, one popular method is to study the star formation rate (SFR) as a function of the X-ray luminosity (LX). However, hydrodynamical simulations suggest that the cumulative impact of AGN feedback on a galaxy is encapsulated in the mass of the SMBH, MBH, rather than the LX. In this study, we compare the SFRs of AGN and non-AGN galaxies as a function of LX, MBH, the Eddington ratio (nEdd), and the specific black hole accretion rate (λsBHAR). For that purpose, we used 122 X-ray AGN in the XMM-XXL field and 3371 galaxies from the VIPERS survey to calculate the SFRnorm parameter, defined as the ratio of the SFR of AGN to the SFR of non-AGN galaxies with similar stellar mass, M*, and redshift. Our datasets span a redshift range of 0.5 ≤ z ≤ 1.2. The results show that the correlation between SFRnorm and MBH is stronger compared to that between SFRnorm and LX. A weaker correlation is found between SFRnorm and λsBHAR. No correlation is detected between SFRnorm and nEdd. These results corroborate the notion that the MBH is a more robust tracer of the cumulative impact of the AGN feedback, compared to the instantaneous accretion rate (LX). Thus, it may serve as a better predictive parameter of changes in the SFR of the host galaxy.

Probing the roles of orientation and multiscale gas distributions in shaping the obscuration of active galactic nuclei through cosmic time

ABSTRACT The origin of obscuration in active galactic nuclei (AGNs) is still an open debate. In particular, it is unclear what drives the relative contributions to the line-of-sight column densities from galaxy-scale and torus-linked obscuration. The latter source is expected to play a significant role in Unification Models, while the former is thought to be relevant in both Unification and Evolutionary models. In this work, we make use of a combination of cosmological semi-analytic models and semi-empirical prescriptions for the properties of galaxies and AGN, to study AGN obscuration. We consider a detailed object-by-object modelling of AGN evolution, including different AGN light curves (LCs), gas density profiles, and also AGN feedback-induced gas cavities. Irrespective of our assumptions on specific AGN LC or galaxy gas fractions, we find that, on the strict assumption of an exponential profile for the gas component, galaxy-scale obscuration alone can hardly reproduce the fraction of log (NH/cm−2) ≥ 24 sources at least at z ≲ 3. This requires an additional torus component with a thickness that decreases with luminosity to match the data. The torus should be present in all evolutionary stages of a visible AGN to be effective, although galaxy-scale gas obscuration may be sufficient to reproduce the obscured fraction with 22 < log (NH/cm−2) < 24 (Compton-thin, CTN) if we assume extremely compact gas disc components. The claimed drop of CTN fractions with increasing luminosity does not appear to be a consequence of AGN feedback, but rather of gas reservoirs becoming more compact with decreasing stellar mass.

Active Galactic Nuclei Feedback in SDSS-IV MaNGA: AGNs Have Suppressed Central Star Formation Rates

Despite the importance of feedback from active galactic nuclei (AGNs) in models of galaxy evolution, observational constraints on the influence of AGN feedback on star formation remain weak. To this end, we have compared the star formation trends of 279 low-redshift AGN galaxies with 558 inactive control galaxies using integral field unit spectroscopy from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey-IV Mapping Nearby Galaxies at Apache Point Observatory survey. With a Gaussian-process-based methodology, we reconstruct nonparametric star formation histories in spatially resolved spaxels covering the face of each galaxy. Based on the galaxy-wide star formation rates (SFRs) alone, we find no obvious signatures of AGN feedback. However, the AGN galaxies have significantly suppressed central (kiloparsec-scale) SFRs, lying up to a factor of 2 below those of the control galaxies, providing direct observational evidence of AGN feedback suppressing star formation. The suppression of central SFRs in the AGN galaxies began in the central regions ∼6 Gyr ago (redshift z ∼ 0.7), taking place over a few gigayears. A small subset of the AGN galaxies were rapidly driven to quiescence shortly before being observed (in the last 500 Myr), potentially indicating instances of AGN-driven feedback. More frequently, however, star formation continues in the AGN galaxies, with suppression primarily in the central regions. This is suggestive of a picture in which integrated (gigayear-timescale) AGN feedback can significantly affect central star formation, but may be inefficient in driving galaxy-wide quenching in low-redshift galaxies, instead leaving them in the green valley.

The co-evolution of strong AGN and central galaxies in different environments

ABSTRACT We exploit a sample of 80 000 Sloan Digital Sky Survey central galaxies to investigate the effect of active galactic nucleus (AGN) feedback on their evolution. We trace the demographics of optically selected AGN (Seyferts) as a function of their internal properties and environment. We find that the preeminence of AGN as the dominant ionizing mechanism increases with stellar mass, overtaking star formation for galaxies with Mstellar ≥ 1010 M⊙. The AGN fraction changes systematically with the galaxies’ star formation activity. Within the blue cloud, this fraction increases as star formation activity declines, reaching a maximum near the green valley (${\sim} 17 \pm 4~{{\ \rm per\ cent}}$), followed by a decrease as the galaxies transition into the red sequence. This systematic trend provides evidence that AGN feedback plays a key role in regulating and suppressing star formation. In general, Seyfert central galaxies achieve an early-type morphology while they still host residual star formation. This suggests that, in all environments, the morphology of Seyfert galaxies evolves from late- to early-type before their star formation is fully quenched. Stellar mass plays an important role in this morphological transformation: while low-mass systems tend to emerge from the green valley with an elliptical morphology (T-Type ∼ −2.5 ± 0.7), their high-mass counterparts maintain a spiral morphology deeper into the red sequence. In high-stellar mass centrals, the fraction of Seyferts increases from early- to late-type galaxies, indicating that AGN feedback may be linked with the morphology and its transformation. Our analysis further suggests that AGN are fuelled by their own host halo gas reservoir, but when in group centrals can also increase their gas reservoir via interactions with satellite galaxies.

Automated detection of double nuclei galaxies using Gothic and the discovery of a large sample of dual AGN

ABSTRACT We present a novel algorithm to detect double nuclei galaxies (DNG) called Gothic (Graph-bOosTed iterated HIll Climbing) – that detects whether a given image of a galaxy has two or more closely separated nuclei. Our aim is to test for the presence of dual/multiple active galactic nuclei (AGN) in galaxies that visually represent a DNG. Although galaxy mergers are common, the detection of dual AGN is rare. Their detection is very important as they help us understand the formation of supermassive black hole (SMBH) binaries, SMBH growth and AGN feedback effects in multiple nuclei systems. There is thus a need for an algorithm to do a systematic survey of existing imaging data for the discovery of DNGs and dual AGNs. We have tested Gothic on an established sample of DNGs with a 100 per cent detection rate and subsequently conducted a blind search of 1 million SDSS DR16 galaxies (with spectroscopic data available) lying in the redshift range of z = 0 to 0.75. From the list of candidate DNGs found, we have detected 159 dual AGNs, of which 2 are triple AGN systems. Our results show that dual AGNs are not common, and triple AGN even rarer. The colour (u–r) magnitude plots of the DNGs indicate that star formation is quenched as the nuclei come closer and as the AGN fraction increases. The quenching is especially prominent for dual/triple AGN galaxies that lie at the extreme end of the red sequence.

Discovery of a radio jet in the Cloverleaf quasar at z = 2.56

ABSTRACT The fast growth of supermassive black holes and their feedback to the host galaxies play an important role in regulating the evolution of galaxies, especially in the early Universe. However, due to cosmological dimming and the limited angular resolution of most observations, it is difficult to resolve the feedback from the active galactic nuclei (AGNs) to their host galaxies. Gravitational lensing, for its magnification, provides a powerful tool to spatially differentiate emission originating from AGN and host galaxy at high-redshifts. Here, we report a discovery of a jet-like radio structure in a strongly lensed starburst quasar, H1413+117 or Cloverleaf at redshift z = 2.56, based on observational data at optical, submillimetre, and radio wavelengths. With both parametric and non-parametric lens models and with reconstructed images in the source plane, we find a well-separated, kpc-scaled, single-sided radio jet located at projected ${\sim }1.2\, \mathrm{kpc}$ to the north-west of the host galaxy in the source plane. This could indicate the co-existence of feedback from the AGN by both wind and jet in the Cloverleaf quasar.

A Census of WISE-selected Dual and Offset AGNs Across the Sky: New Constraints on Merger-driven Triggering of Obscured AGNs

Pairs of galaxies hosting active galactic nuclei (AGNs) are powerful probes of merger-driven supermassive black hole (SMBH) growth as they can resolve individual AGNs and trace mergers over a large range of physical separations. To exploit this on a large scale for the first time for both obscured and unobscured AGNs, we use the photometric redshifts of AGNs selected by the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) to find probabilistic pairs (<100 kpc separations) across the sky, along with a comparison sample of inactive galaxy pairs. Our final sample of integrated pair probabilities yields 198 AGN–AGN pairs (dual AGNs) and 2767 AGN–galaxy pairs (offset AGNs) with uniformly measured AGN and host galaxy physical properties. We find the fraction of galaxy pairs hosting WISE AGNs is dominated by offset AGNs and is significantly elevated above that of inactive galaxies for large host stellar masses. We show how the AGN merger fraction directly increases with AGN extinction for both offset and dual AGNs, with up to ∼40% of heavily obscured AGNs found in galaxy pairs. Elevated AGN merger fractions coincide with increased host specific star formation rates that suggest merger-driven coevolution of galaxies and SMBHs. Among dual AGNs, the most rapid SMBH growth may occur within the less-massive galaxy. Relative to stochastic mechanisms, mergers produce an excess of AGNs at increasingly smaller separations, especially for obscured AGNs (up to a factor of ∼5), and are augmented by correlated triggering. Finally, this excess is stronger than for lower-luminosity optically selected AGNs, regardless of the AGN obscuration level.

The miniJPAS survey: AGN and host galaxy coevolution of X-ray-selected sources

Studies indicate strong evidence of a scaling relation in the local Universe between the supermassive black hole mass (MBH) and the stellar mass of their host galaxies (M⋆). They even show similar histories across cosmic times of their differential terms: the star formation rate (SFR) and black hole accretion rate (BHAR). However, a clear picture of this coevolution is far from being understood. We selected an X-ray sample of active galactic nuclei (AGN) up to z = 2.5 in the miniJPAS footprint. Their X-ray to infrared spectral energy distributions (SEDs) have been modeled with the CIGALE code, constraining the emission to 68 bands, from which 54 are the narrow filters from the miniJPAS survey. For a final sample of 308 galaxies, we derived their physical properties, such as their M⋆, SFR, star formation history (SFH), and the luminosity produced by the accretion process of the central BH (LAGN). For a subsample of 113 sources, we also fit their optical spectra to obtain the gas velocity dispersion from the broad emission lines and estimated the MBH. We calculated the BHAR in physical units depending on two radiative efficiency regimes. We find that the Eddington ratios (λEdd) and its popular proxy (LX/M⋆) have a difference of 0.6 dex, on average, and a KS test indicates that they come from different distributions. Our sources exhibit a considerable scatter on the MBH − M⋆ scaling relation, which can explain the difference between λEdd and its proxy. We also modeled three evolution scenarios for each source to recover the integral properties at z = 0. Using the SFR and BHAR, we show a notable diminution in the scattering between MBH − M⋆. For the last scenario, we considered the SFH and a simple energy budget for the AGN accretion, and we retrieved a relation similar to the calibrations known for the local Universe. Our study covers ∼1 deg2 in the sky and is sensitive to biases in luminosity. Nevertheless, we show that, for bright sources, the link between the differential values (SFR and BHAR) and their decoupling based on an energy limit is the key that leads to the local MBH − M⋆ scaling relation. In the future, we plan to extend this methodology to a thousand degrees of the sky using JPAS with an X-ray selection from eROSITA, to obtain an unbiased distribution of BHAR and Eddington ratios.

On the Cosmic Evolution of AGN Obscuration and the X-Ray Luminosity Function: XMM-Newton and Chandra Spectral Analysis of the 31.3 deg2 Stripe 82X

We present X-ray spectral analysis of XMM-Newton and Chandra observations in the 31.3 deg2 Stripe-82X (S82X) field. Of the 6181 unique X-ray sources in this field, we analyze a sample of 2937 candidate active galactic nuclei (AGNs) with solid redshifts and sufficient counts determined by simulations. Our results show an observed population with median values of spectral index , column density log and intrinsic, de-absorbed, 2–10 keV luminosity log, in the redshift range 0–4. We derive the intrinsic, model-independent, fraction of AGNs that are obscured (), finding a significant increase in the obscured AGN fraction with redshift and a decline with increasing luminosity. The average obscured AGN fraction is 57% ± 4% for log L X/erg s−1 > 43. This work constrains the AGN obscuration and spectral shape of the still uncertain high-luminosity and high-redshift regimes (log L X/erg s−1 > 45.5, z > 3), where the obscured AGN fraction rises to 64% ± 12%. We report a luminosity and density evolution of the X-ray luminosity function, with obscured AGNs dominating at all luminosities at z > 2, and unobscured sources prevailing at log L X/erg s−1 > 45 at lower redshifts. Our results agree with the evolutionary models in which the bulk of AGN activity is triggered by gas-rich environments and in a downsizing scenario. Moreover, the black hole accretion density (BHAD) is found to evolve similarly to the star formation rate density, confirming the coevolution between AGN and host galaxy, but suggesting different timescales in their growing history. The derived BHAD evolution shows that Compton-thick AGNs contribute to the accretion history of AGNs as much as all other AGN populations combined.

Comparison of star formation histories of AGN and non-AGN galaxies

We used active galactic nuclei (AGNs) with X-ray luminosities, LX, 2 − 10 keV ∼ 1042.5 − 44 erg s−1, from the COSMOS-Legacy survey that lie within the UltraVISTA region and cross-matched them with the LEGA-C catalogue. The latter provides measurements of the calcium break, Dn4000, and Hδ Balmer line that allow us to study the stellar populations of AGNs and compare them with a galaxy reference catalogue. Our samples consist of 69 AGNs and 2176 non-AGN systems, within 0.6 &lt; z &lt; 1.3, that satisfy the same photometric selection criteria. We constructed the spectral energy distributions (SEDs) of both population and used the CIGALE code to investigate the effect of the two indices in the SED fitting process. Our analysis shows that the inclusion of Dn4000 and Hδ allows CIGALE to better constrain the ages of the stellar populations. Furthermore, we find an increase of the estimated stellar masses by ∼0.2 dex, in particular for systems with young stars (Dn4000 &lt; 1.5), when the two indices are included in the SED fitting. We then compare the Dn4000 and Hδ of AGNs with sources in the reference catalogue, accounting for the different stellar mass of the two populations. Our analysis reveals that low-to-moderate LX AGNs tend to reside in galaxies with older stellar populations and are less likely to have experienced a recent star formation burst compared to galaxies in the control sample. Finally, we compared the two populations as a function of their morphology (bulge-dominated, BD, versus non-BD) and compactness (mass-to-size ratio). A similar fraction of AGN and non-AGN systems are classified as non-BD (∼70%). Our analysis shows that BD AGN tend to have younger stellar populations compared to BD non-AGN systems. On the other hand, non-BD AGNs have, on average, older stellar populations and are less likely to have experienced a burst compared to non-BD sources in the reference sample. Furthermore, AGNs tend to prefer more compact systems compared to non-AGNs.

Cosmic evolution of the incidence of active galactic nuclei in massive clusters: simulations versus observations

ABSTRACT This paper explores the role of small-scale environment (&amp;lt;1 Mpc) in modulating accretion events on to supermassive black holes by studying the incidence of active galactic nuclei (AGNs) in massive clusters of galaxies. A flexible, data-driven semi-empirical model is developed based on a minimal set of parameters and under the zero-order assumption that the incidence of AGNs in galaxies is independent of environment. This is used to predict how the fraction of X-ray selected AGN among galaxies in massive dark matter haloes ($\gtrsim 3\times 10^{14}\, \mathrm{M}_{\odot }$) evolves with redshift and reveal tensions with observations. At high redshift, z ∼ 1.2, the model underpredicts AGN fractions, particularly at high X-ray luminosities, $L_X(\rm 2\rm{-}10\, keV) \gtrsim 10^{44}\, erg \, s^{-1}$. At low redshift, z ∼ 0.2, the model estimates fractions of moderate luminosity AGN ($L_X(\rm 2\rm{-}10\, keV) \gtrsim 10^{43}\, erg \, s^{-1}$) that are a factor of 2–3 higher than the observations. These findings reject the zero-order assumption on which the semi-empirical model hinges and point to a strong and redshift-dependent influence of the small-scale environment on the growth of black holes. Cluster of galaxies appear to promote AGN activity relative to the model expectation at z ∼ 1.2 and suppress it close to the present day. These trends could be explained by the increasing gas content of galaxies towards higher redshift combined with an efficient triggering of AGNs at earlier times in galaxies that fall on to clusters.

The environment of AGN dwarf galaxies at z ∼ 0.7 from the VIPERS survey

ABSTRACT Dwarf galaxies are ideal laboratories to study the relationship between the environment and active galactic nucleus (AGN) activity. However, the type of environments in which dwarf galaxies hosting AGN reside is still unclear and limited to low-redshift studies (${z\lt 0.5}$). We use the VIMOS Public Extragalactic Redshift Survey (VIPERS) to investigate, for the first time, their environments at $0.5\lt {z}\lt 0.9$. We select a sample of 12 942 low-mass ($\rm {log}(\mathit{ M}_\mathrm{*}/M_{\odot })\le 10$) galaxies and use the emission-line diagnostic diagram to identify AGN. We characterize their local environments as the galaxy density contrast, δ, derived from the fifth nearest neighbour method. Our work demonstrates that AGN and non-AGN dwarf galaxies reside in similar environments at intermediate redshift suggesting that the environment is not an important factor in triggering AGN activity already since ${z=0.9}$. Dwarf galaxies show a strong preference for low-density environments, independently of whether they host an AGN or not. Their properties do not change when moving to denser environments, suggesting that dwarf galaxies are not gas-enriched due to environmental effects. Moreover, AGN presence does not alter host properties supporting the scenario that AGN feedback does not impact the star formation of the host. Lastly, AGNs are found to host overmassive black holes. This is the first study of dwarf galaxies hosting AGNs at ${z\gt 0.5}$. The next generation of deep surveys will reveal whether or not such lack of environmental trends is common also for faint higher redshift dwarf galaxy populations.

On the Coevolution of the AGN and Star-forming Galaxy Ultraviolet Luminosity Functions at 3 < z < 9

Studies of the rest-frame ultraviolet (UV) luminosity functions (LFs) typically treat star-forming galaxies and active galactic nuclei (AGNs) separately. However, modern ground-based surveys now probe volumes large enough to discover AGNs at depths sensitive enough for fainter galaxies, bridging these two populations. Using these observations as constraints, we present a methodology to empirically jointly model the evolution of the rest-UV LFs at z = 3–9. Our critical assumptions are that both populations have LFs well described by double power laws modified to allow for a flattening at the faint-end, and that all LF parameters evolve smoothly with redshift. This methodology provides a good fit to the observations and makes predictions to volume densities not yet observed, finding that the volume density of bright (M UV = −28) AGNs rises by ∼105 from z = 9 to z = 3, while bright (M UV = −21) star-forming galaxies rise by only ∼102 across the same epoch. The observed bright-end flattening of the z = 9 LF is unlikely to be due to AGN activity, and rather is due to a shallowing of the bright-end slope, implying a reduction of feedback in bright galaxies at early times. The intrinsic ionizing emissivity is dominated by star-forming galaxies at z > 3, even after applying a notional escape fraction. We find decent agreement between our AGN LFs and predictions based on different black hole seeding models, though all models underpredict the observed abundance of bright AGNs. We show that the wide-area surveys of the upcoming Euclid and Roman observatories should be capable of discovering AGNs to z ∼ 8.

Photometric variability in star-forming galaxies as evidence for low-mass AGN and a precursor to quenching

ABSTRACT We measure the optical variability in ∼16 500 low-redshift (z ∼ 0.1) galaxies to map the relations between active galactic nucleus (AGN) activity and galaxy stellar mass, specific star formation rate, half-light radius, and bulge-to-total ratio. To do this, we use a reduced χ2 variability measure on &amp;gt;10 epoch light curves from the Zwicky Transient Facility and combine with spectroscopic data and derive galaxy parameters from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. We find that below the stellar mass of 1011 M⊙, galaxies classed as star-forming via the Baldwin–Phillips–Terlevich diagram have higher mean variabilities than AGN or composite galaxies. Revealingly, the highest mean variabilities occur in star-forming galaxies in a narrow range of specific star formation rate: −11 &amp;lt; log(sSFR/yr−1) &amp;lt; −10. In very actively star-forming galaxies [log(sSFR/yr−1) &amp;gt; −10], the reduced variability implies a lack of instantaneous correlation with star formation rate. Our results may indicate that a high level of variability, and thus black hole growth, acts as a precursor for reduced star formation, bulge growth, and revealed AGN-like emission lines. These results add to the mounting evidence that optical variability can act as a viable tracer for low-mass AGNs and that such AGNs can strongly affect their host galaxy.

Localizing narrow Fe Kαemission within bright AGN

Context.The 6.4 keV Fe Kαemission line is a ubiquitous feature in X-ray spectra of active galactic nuclei (AGN), and its properties track the interaction between the variable primary X-ray continuum and the surrounding structure from which it arises.Aims.We clarify the nature and origin of the narrow Fe Kαemission using X-ray spectral, timing, and imaging constraints, plus possible correlations to AGN and host galaxy properties, for 38 bright nearby AGN (z &lt; 0.5) from the Burst Alert Telescope AGN Spectroscopic Survey.Methods.ModelingChandraandXMM-Newtonspectra, we computed line full-width half-maxima (FWHMs) and constructed Fe Kαline and 2–10 keV continuum light curves. The FWHM provides one estimate of the Fe Kαemitting region size,RFeKα, assuming virial motion. A second estimate comes from comparing the degree of correlation between the variability of the continuum and line-only light curves, compared to simulated light curves. Finally, we extractedChandraradial profiles to place upper limits onRFeKα.Results.For 90% (21/24) of AGN with FWHM measurements,RFeKαis smaller than the fiducial dust sublimation radius,Rsub. From timing analysis, 37 and 18 AGN show significant continuum and Fe Kαvariability, respectively. Despite a wide range of variability properties, the constraints on the Fe Kαphoton reprocessor size independently confirm thatRFeKαis smaller thanRsubin 83% of AGN. Finally, the imaging analysis yields loose upper limits for all but two sources; notably, the Circinus Galaxy and NGC 1068 show significant but subdominant extended Fe Kαemission out to ∼100 and ∼800 pc, respectively.Conclusions.Based on independent constraints, we conclude that the majority of the narrow Fe Kαemission in typical AGN predominantly arises from regions smaller than and presumably insideRsub, and thus it is associated either with the outer broad line region or outer accretion disk. However, the large diversity of continuum and narrow Fe Kαvariability properties are not easily accommodated by a universal scenario.

On the relation of host properties and environment of AGN galaxies across the standard optical diagnostic diagram

ABSTRACT We study the host properties and environment of active galactic nuclei (AGNs) galaxies, taken from SDSS-DR12, across the [O iii]/H β versus [N ii]/H α diagnostic diagram. We select AGN subsamples defined as parallel and perpendicular to the star-forming locus on the BPT diagram based on the Kauffmann et al. and Schawinski et al. criteria. For parallel subsamples we find that AGN host properties exhibit a morphological evolution as they become more distant to the star-forming sequence. The local density environment shows a more evident morphology–density relationship for subsamples mainly formed by Composite and Spiral galaxies than those containing LINERs and Seyferts, where the AGN emission is the dominant source. We also analyse the properties of the five closest AGN neighbours observing no significant differences in the environment, although the AGN host properties of every subsample have noticeable variations. The AGNs belonging to perpendicular subsamples show clear differences on their host properties from left top to right bottom on the diagram. However, the analysis of the local density environment do not reflect strong dependency with the host AGN properties. This result is reinforced by the characteristics of the AGN neighbouring galaxies. These findings suggest that mixed AGN/star-forming galaxies present environmental features more similar to that of non-active galaxies. However, as AGNs at the centre of the more evolved galaxies become the dominant source, the environment tends to provide suitable conditions for the central black hole feeding with an increasing content of gas and likelihood of a higher merger rate.