Kinetic Luminosity Research Articles

Constraints on the AGN flares as sources of ultra-high energy cosmic rays from the Fermi-LAT observations

It is well known that if the most energetic cosmic rays (E>1020 eV) were protons then their acceleration sites should possess some extreme properties, including gigantic luminosity. As no stationary sources with such properties are known in the local (D<200 Mpc) neighborhood of the Milky Way, it is highly likely that the UHECR acceleration takes place in some transient events. In this paper we investigate scenario where the UHECRs are produced in strong AGN flares. Using more than 7 years of the Fermi-LAT observations we select candidate flares and, using correlation between jet kinetic luminosity and its bolometric luminosity, estimate local kinetic emissivity of giant AGN flares: ℒ∼3.7×1044erg Mpc−3 yr−1. This value is about an order of magnitude larger than the emissivity in the CRs with E>1020 eV, thus making this scenario feasible, if the UHECR escape spectrum in these sources is rather hard and/or narrow. This shape of spectrum is predicted in a number of present models of strong relativistic collisionless shocks. Also the scenario of acceleration in AGN flares can accommodate constraints coming from the observed arrival distribution of UHECRs. Finally, we demonstrate that in case of heavier UHECR composition all the constraints are greatly relaxed.

Radiation-driven outflows in AGNs: revisiting feedback effects of scattered and reprocessed photons

ABSTRACT We perform 2D hydrodynamical simulations of slowly rotating accretion flows in the region of $0.01\!-\!7\, \mathrm{pc}$ around a supermassive black holes with $M_\mathrm{BH} = 10^{8} \, \mathrm{M}_{\odot }$. The accretion flow is irradiated by the photons from the central active galactic nucleus (AGN). In addition to the direct radiation from the AGN, we have also included the ‘re-radiation’, i.e. the locally produced radiation by Thomson scattering, line, and bremsstrahlung radiation. Compare to our previous work, we have improved the calculation of radiation force due to the Thomson scattering of X-ray photons from the central AGN. We find that this improvement can significantly increase the mass flux and velocity of outflow. We have compared the properties of outflow – including mass outflow rate, velocity, and kinetic luminosity of outflow – in our simulation with the observed properties of outflow in AGNs and found that they are in good consistency. This implies that the combination of line and re-radiation forces is the possible origin of observed outflow in luminous AGNs.

Discovery of Metastable He I* λ10830 Mini-broad Absorption Lines and Very Narrow Paschen α Emission Lines in the ULIRG Quasar IRAS F11119+3257

Abstract IRAS F11119+3257 is a quasar-dominated ultraluminous infrared galaxy, with a partially obscured narrow-line Seyfert 1 nucleus. In this paper, we present the near-IR (NIR) spectroscopy of F11119+3257, in which we find unusual Paschen emission lines and metastable He i* λ10830 absorption associated with the previously reported atomic sodium and molecular OH mini-BAL (broad absorption line) outflow. Photoionization diagnosis confirms previous findings that the outflows are at kiloparsec scales. Such large-scale outflows should produce emission lines. We indeed find that high-ionization emission lines ([O III], [Ne III], and [Ne V]) are dominated by blueshifted components at similar speeds to the mini-BALs. The blueshifted components are also detected in some low-ionization emission lines, such as [O II] λ3727 and some Balmer lines (Hα, Hβ, and Hγ), even though their cores are dominated by narrow (FWHMNEL = 570 ± 40 km s−1) or broad components at the systemic redshift of z = 0.18966 ± 0.00006. The mass flow rate (230–730 M ⊙ yr−1) and the kinetic luminosity ( erg s−1) are then inferred jointly from the blueshifted emission and absorption lines. In the NIR spectrum of F11119+3257, we also find that the Paschen emission lines are unique, in which a very narrow (FWHM = 260 ± 20 km s−1) component is shown in only Paα. This narrow component most probably comes from heavily obscured star formation. Based on the Paα and Paβ emissions, we obtain an extinction at the H band, A H &gt; 2.1 (or a reddenning of &gt; 3.7), and a star formation rate of SFR &gt; 130 M ⊙ yr−1 that resembles the estimates inferred from the far-IR emissions (SFRFIR = 190 ± 90 M ⊙ yr−1).

Super-Eddington Accretion Disks around Supermassive Black Holes

Abstract We use global three-dimensional radiation magnetohydrodynamical simulations to study accretion disks onto a black hole with accretion rates varying from to . We initialize the disks with a weakly magnetized torus centered at either 50 or 80 gravitational radii, leading to self-consistent turbulence generated by the magnetorotational instability (MRI). The inner regions of all disks have radiation pressure ∼104–106 times the gas pressure. Nonaxisymmetric density waves that steepen into spiral shocks form as gas flows toward the black hole. Maxwell stress from MRI turbulence can be larger than the Reynolds stress only when the net vertical magnetic flux is sufficiently large. Outflows are formed with a speed of ∼0.1–0.4c. When the accretion rate is smaller than , outflows are launched from ∼10 gravitational radii, and the radiative efficiency is ∼5%–7%. For an accretion rate reaching , most of the funnel region near the rotation axis becomes optically thick, and the outflow is launched from beyond 50 gravitational radii. The radiative efficiency is reduced to 1%. We always find that the kinetic energy luminosity associated with the outflow is at most ∼15%–30% of the radiative luminosity. The mass flux in the outflow is ∼15%–50% of the net mass accretion rates. We discuss the implications of our simulation results on the observational properties of these disks.

Galactic-scale Broad Absorption Line Outflow in the Quasar SDSS J144842.45+042403.1

Abstract We report a clear detection of He i*λλ2946, 3189, and 3889 broad absorption line (BAL) in the low-ionization BAL (LoBAL) quasar SDSS J144842.45+042403.1. We also detected new BALs, including Lyα, C ii, and Si iv, as well as optical emission lines, such as Hα, Hβ, and [O iii]. Using photoionization simulations, we constrained the physical conditions of the outflow to a hydrogen column density of N H ≈ 1021.3 cm−2, an ionization parameter of U ≈ 10−1.4, and a hydrogen number density of n H ≈ 103.6 cm−3, and located its radial distance at r abs ∼ 1.52 kpc from the central engine. The photoionization model predicts the presence of a Lyman limit system with H i column density of N H i ∼ 3.0 × 1017–1.2 × 1018 cm−2, which is confirmed by the GALEX photometry. Interestingly, we found that the [O iii] emission line doublet has an outflow component at a large blueshift of v ∼ 1700 km s−1 and a width of FWHM ∼ 5000 km s−1. Assuming that we are witnessing the same outflow in both emission and absorption lines, we estimate the global covering fraction of the emission line outflow to be ∼4%, its mass-loss rate to be ∼70 M ⊙ yr−1 and its kinetic luminosity to be ∼3.2 × 1044 erg s−1. SDSS J1448+0424 is a representative example of a significant fraction of LoBAL quasars, which deserves further studies to understand the connection between the growth of supermassive black holes and the evolution of their host galaxies.

VLT/X-Shooter Survey of BAL Quasars: Large Distance Scale and AGN Feedback

Abstract We conducted a survey of quasar outflows using the Very Large Telescope/X-Shooter spectrograph. When choosing the 14 broad absorption line (BAL) and mini-BALs comprising this sample, the data did not cover the S iv and S iv* troughs, whose ratio can be used to determine the distance of the outflows from the central source (R). Therefore, this “Blind Survey” is unbiased toward a particular distance scale. Out of the eight outflows where R can be measured, six have R &gt; 100 pc (spanning the range 100–4500 pc), one has R &gt; 10 pc, and only one (at R &lt; 40 pc) is compatible with a much smaller R scale. At least two of the outflows have a kinetic luminosity greater than 0.5% of their Eddington luminosity, implying that they are able to provide significant active galactic nucleus (AGN) feedback. The outflows span a range of 0 to −10,000 km s−1 in velocity, total column density between 1020.1 and 1022.6 cm−2, ionization parameter ( ) in the range 0.01–1, and electron number density between 103.2 and 105.4 cm−3, with one upper and one lower limit. The results of this survey can be extrapolated to the majority of BAL outflows, implying that most of these outflows are situated far away from the AGN accretion disk, and that a significant portion of them can contribute to AGN feedback processes.

The XXL Survey

The evolution of the comoving kinetic luminosity densities (Ωkin) of the radio loud high-excitation radio galaxies (RL HERGs) and the low-excitation radio galaxies (LERGs) in the ultimate XMM extragalactic survey south (XXL-S) field is presented. The wide area and deep radio and optical data of XXL-S have allowed the construction of the radio luminosity functions (RLFs) of the RL HERGs and LERGs across a wide range in radio luminosity out to high redshift (z = 1.3). The LERG RLFs display weak evolution: Φ(z)∝(1 + z)0.67 ± 0.17 in the pure density evolution (PDE) case and Φ(z)∝(1 + z)0.84 ± 0.31 in the pure luminosity evolution (PLE) case. The RL HERG RLFs demonstrate stronger evolution than the LERGs: Φ(z)∝(1 + z)1.81 ± 0.15 for PDE and Φ(z)∝(1 + z)3.19 ± 0.29 for PLE. Using a scaling relation to convert the 1.4 GHz radio luminosities into kinetic luminosities, the evolution of Ωkin was calculated for the RL HERGs and LERGs and compared to the predictions from various simulations. The prediction for the evolution of radio mode feedback in the Semi-Analytic Galaxy Evolution (SAGE) model is consistent with the Ωkin evolution for all XXL-S RL AGN (all RL HERGs and LERGs), indicating that the kinetic luminosities of RL AGN may be able to balance the radiative cooling of the hot phase of the IGM. Simulations that predict the Ωkin evolution of LERG equivalent populations show similar slopes to the XXL-S LERG evolution, suggesting that observations of LERGs are well described by models of SMBHs that slowly accrete hot gas. On the other hand, models of RL HERG equivalent populations differ in their predictions. While LERGs dominate the kinetic luminosity output of RL AGN at all redshifts, the evolution of the RL HERGs in XXL-S is weaker compared to what other studies have found. This implies that radio mode feedback from RL HERGs is more prominent at lower redshifts than was previously thought.

Jet propagation velocity and environment density of giant radio sources with steep radio spectrum

Before we have determined that giant radio structure is typical for steep-spectrum sources detected with Ukrainian T-shaped Radio Telescope of model 2 (UTR-2). To estimate the jet propagation velocity and environment density of giant radio sources we consider the sample of galaxies and quasars with steep radio spectrum compiled from two regions of UTR-2 catalogue. The value of velocity of jet propagation is obtained from our estimates of linear size of radio structure and characteristic age of a source. We use the obtained values of jet propagation velocity for the estimates of density of jet environment, that is, density of environment at galaxies and quasars outskirts. We have derived that values of jet propagation velocities of examined sources are ~10e9 cm/s. The positive correlation of jet velocity and redshift of sources is displayed in our sample. On the assumption of equality of jet luminosity and corresponding kinetic luminosity we estimate the density of jet environment (radio structure environment) for galaxies (10e-26 gcm-3 to 10e-27 gcm-3) and quasars (10e-28 gcm-3). Considered steep-spectrum galaxies and quasars display strong evolution of jet propagation velocity and jet environment density. Properties of giant steep-spectrum sources are in accordance with conception of long evolution of powerful sources. The steep low-frequency spectra may be as markers of giant radio structures of galaxies and quasars.

Diagnostics of Parameters for the X-ray Jets of SS 433 from High-Resolution Chandra Spectroscopy

The X-ray spectrum of the Galactic microquasar SS 433 contains a rich set of emission lines of highly ionized atoms of heavy elements whose significant Doppler shift leaves no doubt that they are produced in collimated relativistic jets of outflowing material. We have performed a systematic analysis of the high-resolution X-ray spectra obtained by the Chandra observatory to determine the parameters of the jets within the multitemperature model of their emission that self-consistently predicts the source's line and continuum spectrum. The spectrum of SS 433 at energies below 3 keV is shown to be statistically satisfactorily described by the jet emission model, while the introduction of an additional hard component is required above 3 keV. We summarize the jet parameters (bulk velocity, opening angle, kinetic luminosity, base temperature, and relative elemental abundances) derived by fitting the data below 3 keV and describe the revealed degeneracies and systematic effects due to the presence of an additional component. Using the derived parameters, we show that the hard component is compatible with the emission from the hot (up to 40 keV) extension of the visible part of the jets moderately absorbed ($N_H \sim 2 \times 10^{23}$ cm$^{-2}$) in the cold-wind material. The combined X-ray emission model constructed in this way allows the broadband spectrum of SS 433 to be described self-consistently.

Multiwavelength campaign on Mrk 509

Aims. To elucidate the location, physical conditions, mass outflow rate, and kinetic luminosity of the outflow from the active nucleus of the Seyfert 1 galaxy Mrk 509, we used coordinated UV and X-ray spectral observations in 2012 to follow up our lengthier campaign conducted in 2009. Methods. We observed Mrk 509 with the Cosmic Origins Spectrograph (COS) on the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) on 2012-09-03 and 2012-10-11 coordinated with X-ray observations using the High Energy Transmission Grating on the Chandra X-ray Observatory. Our far-ultraviolet spectra used grating G140L on COS to cover wavelengths from 920–2000 Å at a resolving power of ∼2000, and gratings G130M and G160M to cover 1160–1750 Å at a resolving power of ∼15, 000. Results. We detect variability in the blueshifted UV absorption lines on timescales spanning 3–12 years. The inferred densities in the absorbing gas are greater than log n cm−3 ∼ 3. For ionization parameters ranging over log U = −1.5 to −0.2, we constrain the distances of the absorbers to be closer than 220 pc to the active nucleus. Conclusions. The impact on the host galaxy appears to be confined to the nuclear region.

HST observations of [O III] emission in nearby QSO2s: Physical properties of the outflows

AbstractWe used Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (STIS) long slit medium-resolution G430M and G750M spectra to analyze the extended [O III] λ5007 emission in a sample of twelve QSO2s from Reyes et al. (2008). The purpose of the study was to determine the properties of the mass outflows and their role in AGN feedback. We measured fluxes and velocities as functions of deprojected radial distances. Using photoionization models and ionizing luminosities derived from [O III], we were able to estimate the densities for the emission-line gas. From these results, we derived masses, mass outflow rates, kinetic energies and kinetic luminosity rates as a function of radial distance for each of the targets. Masses are several times 103 - 107 solar masses, which are comparable to values determined from a recent photoionization study of Mrk 34 (Revalski). Additionally, we are studying the possible role of X-ray winds in these QSO2s.

Using Hα Filaments to Probe Active Galactic Nuclei Feedback in Galaxy Clusters

Abstract Recent observations of giant ellipticals and brightest cluster galaxies (BCGs) provide tentative evidence for a correlation between the luminosity of the Hα-emitting gas filaments and the strength of feedback associated with the active galactic nucleus (AGN). Motivated by this, we use 3D radiation-hydrodynamic simulations with the code Enzo to examine and quantify the relationship between the observable properties of the Hα filaments and the kinetic and radiative feedback from supermassive black holes in BCGs. We find that the spatial extent and total mass of the filaments show positive correlations with AGN feedback power and can therefore be used as probes of the AGN activity. We also examine the relationship between the AGN feedback power and velocity dispersion of the Hα filaments and find that the kinetic luminosity shows a statistically significant correlation with the component of the velocity dispersion along the jet axis, but not the components perpendicular to it.

Radio-loud AGN in the first LoTSS data release

We constructed a sample of 23 344 radio-loud active galactic nuclei (RLAGN) from the catalogue derived from the LOFAR Two-Metre Sky Survey (LoTSS) survey of the HETDEX Spring field. Although separating AGN from star-forming galaxies remains challenging, the combination of spectroscopic and photometric techniques we used gives us one of the largest available samples of candidate RLAGN. We used the sample, combined with recently developed analytical models, to investigate the lifetime distribution of RLAGN. We show that large or giant powerful RLAGN are probably the old tail of the general RLAGN population, but that the low-luminosity RLAGN candidates in our sample, many of which have sizes &lt; 100 kpc, either require a very different lifetime distribution or have different jet physics from the more powerful objects. We then used analytical models to develop a method of estimating jet kinetic powers for our candidate objects and constructed a jet kinetic luminosity function based on these estimates. These values can be compared to observational quantities, such as the integrated radiative luminosity of groups and clusters, and to the predictions from models of RLAGN feedback in galaxy formation and evolution. In particular, we show that RLAGN in the local Universe are able to supply all the energy required per comoving unit volume to counterbalance X-ray radiative losses from groups and clusters and thus prevent the hot gas from cooling. Our computation of the kinetic luminosity density of local RLAGN is in good agreement with other recent observational estimates and with models of galaxy formation.

The properties of broad absorption line outflows based on a large sample of quasars

Quasar outflows carry mass, momentum and energy into the surrounding environment, and have long been considered a potential key factor in regulating the growth of supermassive black holes and the evolution of their host galaxies. A crucial parameter for understanding the origin of these outflows and measuring their influence on their host galaxies is the distance (R) between the outflow gas and the galaxy center. While R has been measured in a number of individual galaxies, its distribution remains unknown. Here we report the distributions of R and the kinetic luminosities of quasars outflows, using the statistical properties of broad absorption line variability in a sample of 915 quasars from the Sloan Digital Sky Surveys. The mean and standard deviation of the distribution of R are 10^{1.4+/-0.5} parsecs. The typical outflow distance in this sample is tens of parsec, which is beyond the theoretically predicted location (0.01 ~ 0.1 parsecs) where the accretion disc line-driven wind is launched, but is smaller than the scales of most outflows that are derived using the excited state absorption lines. The typical value of the mass-flow rate is of tens to a hundred solar masses per year, or several times the accretion rate. The typical kinetic-to-bolometric luminosity ratio is a few per cent, indicating that outflows are energetic enough to influence the evolution of their host galaxies.

Physics of “Cold” Disk Accretion onto Black Holes Driven by Magnetized Winds

Disk accretion onto black holes is accompanied by collimated outflows (jets). In active galactic nuclei (AGN), the kinetic energy flux of the jet (jet power or kinetic luminosity) may exceed the bolometric luminosity of the disk by a few orders of magnitude. This may be explained in the framework of the so called “cold” disk accretion. In this regime of accretion, the disk is radiatively inefficient because practically all the energy released at the accretion is carried out by the magnetized wind. This wind also provides efficient loss of the angular momentum by the matter in the disk. In this review, the physics of the accretion driven by the wind is considered from first principles. It is shown that the magnetized wind can efficiently carry out angular momentum and energy of the matter of the disk. The conditions when this process dominates conventional loss of the angular momentum due to turbulent viscosity are discussed. The “cold” accretion occurs when the viscous stresses in the disk can be neglected in comparison with impact of the wind on the accretion. Two problems crucial for survival of the model of “cold” accretion are considered. The first one is existence of the magnetohydrodynamical solutions for disk accretion purely due to the angular momentum loss by the wind. Another problem is the ability of the model to reproduce observations which demonstrate existence of the sources with kinetic power of jets 2–3 orders of magnitude exceeding the bolometric luminosity of disks. The solutions of the problem in similar prescriptions and numerical solutions without such an assumption are discussed. Calculations of the “unavoidable” radiation from the “cold” disk and the ratio of the jet power of the SMBH to the bolometric luminosity of the accretion disk around a super massive black hole are given in the framework of the Shakura and Sunyaev paradigm of an optically thick α -disk. The exploration of the Fundamental Plane of Black Holes allows us to obtain semi empirical equations that determine the bolometric luminosity and the ratio of the luminosities as functions of the black hole mass and accretion rate.

Ratio of the jet power to the bolometric luminosity of the disk during accretion onto a black hole

Disk accretion onto black holes is accompanied by collimated outflows (jets). In active galactic nuclei (AGN), the kinetic energy flux of the jet (jet power or kinetic luminosity) may exceed the bolometric luminosity of the disk by a few orders of magnitude. This may be explained in the framework of the so-called “cold” disk accretion when the only source of the AGN energy is the energy released by accretion. The radiation from the disk is suppressed because the disk wind carries out almost all the angular momentum and the gravitational energy of the accreting material. In this paper, we calculate the “unavoidable” radiation from the “cold” disk and the ratio of the kinetic energy power of the outflow to the bolometric luminosity of the accretion disk around a super massive black hole in the framework of the Shakura and Sunyaev paradigm of an optically thick [Formula: see text]-disk. The exploration of the Fundamental Plane of Black Holes allows us to obtain equations that define the bolometric luminosity and the ratio of the luminosities as functions of the black hole mass and accretion rate. The application of our equations in the case of the M87 jet demonstrates good agreement with observations. In the case of Sgr A*, these equations allow us to predict the kinetic energy flux from the disk around the Galactic supermassive black hole.

The VLA-COSMOS 3 GHz Large Project: Star formation properties and radio luminosity functions of AGN with moderate-to-high radiative luminosities out to z∼ 6

We have studied a sample of 1604 moderate-to-high radiative luminosity active galactic nuclei (HLAGN) selected at 3 GHz within the VLA-COSMOS 3 GHz Large Project. These were classified by combining multiple AGN diagnostics: X-ray data, mid-infrared data and broadband spectral energy distribution fitting. We decomposed the total radio 1.4 GHz luminosity (L1.4 GHz, TOT) into the emission originating from star formation and AGN activity by measuring the excess in L1.4 GHz, TOT relative to the infrared-radio correlation of star-forming galaxies. To quantify the excess, for each source we calculated the AGN fraction (fAGN) defined as the fractional contribution of AGN activity to L1.4 GHz, TOT. The majority of the HLAGN, (68.0 ± 1.5)%, are dominated by star-forming processes (fAGN ≤ 0.5), while (32.0 ± 1.5)% are dominated by AGN-related radio emission (0.5 &lt; fAGN ≤ 1). We used the AGN-related 1.4 GHz emission to derive the 1.4 GHz AGN luminosity functions of HLAGN. By assuming pure density and pure luminosity evolution models we constrained their cosmic evolution out to z ∼ 6, finding Φ*(z)∝(1 + z)(2.64 ± 0.10)+(−0.61 ± 0.04)z and L*(z)∝(1 + z)(3.97 ± 0.15)+(−0.92 ± 0.06)z. These evolutionary laws show that the number and luminosity density of HLAGN increased from higher redshifts (z ∼ 6) up to a maximum in the redshift range 1 &lt; z &lt; 2.5, followed by a decline toward local values. By scaling the 1.4 GHz AGN luminosity to kinetic luminosity using the standard conversion, we estimate the kinetic luminosity density as a function of redshift. We compare our result to the semi-analytic models of radio mode feedback, and find that this feedback could have played an important role in the context of AGN-host co-evolution in HLAGN which shows evidence of AGN-related radio emission (fAGN &gt; 0).

Distance, Energy, and Variability of Quasar Outflows: Two HST/COS Epochs of LBQS 1206+1052∗

Abstract We analyze new HST/COS spectra for two quasar absorption outflows seen in the quasi-stellar object LBQS 1206+1052. These data cover, for the first time, absorption troughs from S iv, Si ii, and P v. From the ratio of the S iv* to S iv column densities, we measure the electron number density of the higher-velocity (−1400 km s−1, v1400) outflow to be cm−3 and constrain the lower-velocity (−730 km s−1, v700) outflow to log(n e ) &gt; 5.3 cm−3. The n e associated with the higher-velocity outflow is an order of magnitude larger than reported in prior work. We find that the previous measurement was unreliable since it was based on density-sensitive absorption troughs that were likely saturated. Using photoionization models, we determine the best χ 2-minimization fit for the ionization parameter and hydrogen column density of the higher-velocity outflow: log( and log( cm−2, respectively. We calculate from U H and n e a distance of pc from the central source to the outflow. Using an SED attenuated by the v700 outflow yields a two-phase photoionization solution for the v1400 outflow, separated by a . Otherwise, the resultant distance, mass flux, and kinetic luminosity are similar to the unattenuated case. However, the attenuated analysis has significant uncertainties due to a lack of constraints on the v700 outflow in 2017.

Toward the self-consistent model of cold disk accretion

Observations of active galactic nuclei show increasing number of cases when the kinetic luminosity of jets exceeds the bolometric luminosity of disks. We develop a model of so-called cold disk accretion when the majority of the angular momentum is carried out by the wind from the disk rather than by turbulent viscous stresses. In this case the luminosity of the disk can be essentially suppressed and kinetic-to-bolometric luminosity ratio can be consistent with the observations. The method of self-consistent numerical solution of the problem of the outflow and disk accretion is proposed in this work. In this problem the angular momentum carried out by the wind is equal to the angular momentum loss by the Keplerian disk with specified accretion mass rate. Thus, the problem of the wind outflow is consistent with the disk accretion. Example of self-consistent solution of the problem by this method is presented.

Super-luminous Type II supernovae powered by magnetars

Magnetar power is believed to be at the origin of numerous super-luminous supernovae (SNe) of Type Ic, arising from compact, hydrogen-deficient, Wolf-Rayet type stars. Here, we investigate the properties that magnetar power would have on standard-energy SNe associated with 15–20 M⊙ supergiant stars, either red (RSG; extended) or blue (BSG; more compact). We have used a combination of Eulerian gray radiation-hydrodynamics and non-LTE steady-state radiative transfer to study their dynamical, photometric, and spectroscopic properties. Adopting magnetar fields of 1, 3.5, 7 × 1014 G and rotational energies of 0.4, 1, and 3 × 1051 erg, we produce bolometric light curves with a broad maximum covering 50–150 d and a magnitude of 1043–1044 erg s−1. The spectra at maximum light are analogous to those of standard SNe II-P but bluer. Although the magnetar energy is channelled in equal proportion between SN kinetic energy and SN luminosity, the latter may be boosted by a factor of 10–100 compared to a standard SN II. This influence breaks the observed relation between brightness and ejecta expansion rate of standard Type II SNe. Magnetar energy injection also delays recombination and may even cause re-ionization, with a reversal in photospheric temperature and velocity. Depositing the magnetar energy in a narrow mass shell at the ejecta base leads to the formation of a dense shell at a few 1000 km s−1, which causes a light-curve bump at the end of the photospheric phase. Depositing this energy over a broad range of mass in the inner ejecta, to mimic the effect of multi-dimensional fluid instabilities, prevents the formation of a dense shell and produces an earlier-rising and smoother light curve. The magnetar influence on the SN radiation is generally not visible prior to 20–30 d, during which one may discern a BSG from a RSG progenitor. We propose a magnetar model for the super-luminous Type II SN OGLE-SN14-073.