Relationships between beam power and accretion disk luminosity are studied for a sample of 55 HERG, 13 LERG, and 29 RLQ with powerful outflows. The ratio of beam power to disk luminosity tends to be high for LERG, low for RLQ, and spans the full range of values for HERG. Writing general expressions for the disk luminosity and beam power and applying the empirically determined relationships allows a function that parameterizes the spins of the holes to be estimated. Interestingly, one of the solutions that is consistent with the data has a functional form that is remarkably similar to that expected in the generalized Blandford-Znajek model with a magnetic field that is similar in form to that expected in MAD and ADAF models. Values of the spin function, obtained independent of specific outflow models, suggest that spin and AGN type are not related for these types of sources. The spin function can be used to solve for black hole spin in the context of particular outflow models, and one example is provided.
Theoretical models and numerical simulations have established a framework of galaxy evolution in which galaxies merge and create dual supermassive black holes (with separations of one to ten kiloparsecs), which eventually sink into the centre of the merger remnant, emit gravitational waves and coalesce. The merger also triggers star formation and supermassive black hole growth, and gas outflows regulate the stellar content. Although this theoretical picture is supported by recent observations of starburst-driven and supermassive black hole-driven outflows, it remains unclear how these outflows…
Recent observations and simulations have revealed the dominance of secular processes over mergers in driving the growth of both supermassive black holes (SMBH) and galaxy evolution. Here we obtain narrowband imaging of AGN powered outflows in a sample of $12$ galaxies with disk-dominated morphologies, whose history is assumed to be merger-free. We detect outflows in $10/12$ sources in narrow band imaging of the [OIII] $5007 \unicode{x212B}$ emission using filters on the Shane-3m telescope. We calculate a mean outflow rate for these AGN of $0.95\pm0.14~\rm{M}_{\odot}~\rm{yr}^{-1}$. This exceeds…
Optical polarization signal coming from the innermost part of active galactic nuclei (AGNs) is highly sensitive on the geometry and kinematics of the central engine. Due to the compact size of the AGN central region, which is spatially unresolved with current observing facilities, we rely on spectropolarimetry which can provide us insight in their hidden physics. We model equatorial scattering for various broad line region (BLR) configurations using radiative transfer code STOKES. We analyze the polarization position angle () profiles for four supermassive binary black holes (SMBBHs) models an…
We describe a physical model of the outflows produced as a result of gas accretion onto a black hole, and the resultant changes to star formation rates and efficiencies in galaxies, using the Radio-SAGE semi-analytic galaxy formation model. We show that the ratio of outflow rate to SFR of galaxies is mainly driven by black hole mass and virial halo mass, and show that the SFR is higher than the outflow rate at low black hole masses. The model consistently reproduces the observed evolution of star formation rate density from z = 6 to z = 0, as well as the trend of the stellar mass - halo mass r…
The circumgalactic medium (CGM) encodes signatures of the galaxy-formation process, including the interaction of galactic outflows driven by stellar and supermassive black hole (SMBH) feedback with the gaseous halo. Moving beyond spherically symmetric radial profiles, we study the \textit{angular} dependence of CGM properties around $z=0$ massive galaxies in the IllustrisTNG simulations. We characterize the angular signal of density, temperature, and metallicity of the CGM as a function of galaxy stellar mass, halo mass, distance, and SMBH mass, via stacking. TNG predicts that the CGM is aniso…
Supermassive black hole binaries may be detectable by an upcoming suite of gravitational wave experiments. Their binary nature can also be revealed by radio jets via a short-period precession driven by the orbital motion as well as the geodetic precession at typically longer periods. We have investigated Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array (VLA) and MERLIN radio maps of powerful jet sources for morphological evidence of geodetic precession. For perhaps the best studied source, Cygnus A, we find strong evidence for geodetic precession. Projection effects can enhance precession features, for which w…
We investigate how magnetically driven outflows are powered by a rotating, weakly magnetized accretion flow onto a supermassive black hole using axisymmetric magnetohydrodynamic simulations. Our proposed model focuses on the accretion dynamics on an intermediate scale between the Schwarzschild radius and the galactic scale, which is $\sim$1-100 pc. We demonstrate that a rotating disk formed on a parsec-scale acquires poloidal magnetic fields via accretion and this produces an asymmetric bipolar outflow at some point. The formation of the outflow was found to follow the growth of strongly magne…
The rotational properties of astrophysical black holes are fundamental quantities that characterization the black holes. A new method to empirically determine the spin mass-energy characteristics of astrophysical black holes is presented and applied here. Results are obtained for a sample of 100 supermassive black holes with collimated dual outflows and redshifts between about zero and two. An analysis indicates that about two-thirds of the black holes are maximally spinning, while one-third have a broad distribution of spin values; it is shown that the same distributions describe the quantity…
We present a UV spectroscopic study of ionized outflows in 21 active galactic nuclei (AGN), observed with the HST. The targets of the SUBWAYS sample were selected with the aim to probe the parameter space of the underexplored AGN between the local Seyfert galaxies and the luminous quasars at high redshifts. Our targets, spanning redshifts of 0.1-0.4 and bolometric luminosities (L_bol) of 10^45-10^46 erg/s, have been observed with a large multi-wavelength campaign. Here, we model the UV spectra and look for different types of AGN outflows. We find that 60% of our targets show a presence of outf…
Supernovae (SNe) drive multiphase galactic outflows, impacting galaxy formation; however, cosmological simulations mostly use \textit{ad hoc} feedback models for outflows, making outflow-related predictions from first principles problematic. Recent small-box simulations resolve individual SNe remnants in the interstellar medium (ISM), naturally driving outflows and permitting a determination of the wind loading factors of energy $η_E$, mass $η_m$, and metals $η_Z$. In this Letter, we compile small-box results, and find consensus that the hot outflows are much more powerful than the cool outflo…
Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN) represent the growth phases of the supermassive black holes in the center of almost every galaxy. Powerful, highly ionized winds, with velocities $\sim 0.1- 0.2c$ are a common feature in X--ray spectra of luminous AGN, offering a plausible physical origin for the well known connections between the hole and properties of its host. Observability constraints suggest that the winds must be episodic, and detectable only for a few percent of their lifetimes. The most powerful wind feedback, establishing the $M -σ$ relation, is probably not directly observable at all. The…
The close neighbourhood of a supermassive black hole contains not only accreting gas and dust, but also stellar-sized objects like stars, stellar-mass black holes, neutron stars, and dust-enshrouded objects that altogether form a dense nuclear star-cluster. These objects interact with the accreting medium and they perturb the otherwise quasi-stationary configuration of the accretion flow. We investigate how the passages of a star can influence the black hole gaseous environment with GRMHD 2D and 3D simulations. We focus on the changes in the accretion rate and the associated emergence of outfl…
In order to gauge the role that active galactic nuclei (AGN) play in the evolution of galaxies via the effect of kinetic feedback in nearby QSO$\,$2's ($z\sim0.3$), we observed eight such objects with bolometric luminosities $L_{bol} \sim 10^{46}\rm{erg\,s^{-1}}$ using Gemini GMOS-IFU's. The emission lines were fitted with at least two Gaussian curves, the broadest of which we attributed to gas kinetically disturbed by an outflow. We found that the maximum extent of the outflow ranges from $\sim$1 to 8 kpc, being ${\sim}\,0.5\,{\pm}\,0.3$ times the extent of the [O$\,$III] ionized gas region. …
We perform two-dimensional radiation hydrodynamical simulations of accretion flows onto black holes (BHs) at the nuclei of protogalaxies, and study the impact of mechanical and radiative feedback on rapid growth of BHs. The outflows deposit mass, momentum and energy into the surrounding medium and prevent mass accretion onto the BH, resulting in the reduction of radiative output. We find that when the BH is embedded in a dense gas core, ionizing radiation attenuated by inefficient BH feeding owing to mechanical feedback hardly affects the gas dynamics at the BH gravitational sphere of influenc…
We present a new X-ray spectroscopic study of $22$ luminous ($2\times10^{45}\lesssim L_{\rm bol}\rm /erg\,s^{-1} \lesssim 2\times10^{46}$) active galactic nuclei (AGNs) at intermediate-redshift ($0.1 \lesssim z \lesssim 0.4$), as part of the SUpermassive Black hole Winds in the x-rAYS (SUBWAYS) sample, mostly composed of quasars (QSOs) and type\,1 AGN. Here, 17 targets were observed with \textit{XMM-Newton} between 2019--2020 and the remaining 5 are from previous observations. The aim of this large campaign ($1.45\,\rm Ms$ duration) is to characterise the various manifestations of winds in the…
The search and study of close pairs of supermassive black holes (SMBHs) is important in the study of galaxy mergers which can possibly trigger active galactic nucleus (AGN) activity, and in the context of their evolution into the gravitational wave emitting regime. The quasar SDSS~J1048+0055 was identified as a SMBH binary candidate based on the observed double-peaked \OIII$λλ$4959,5007 emission lines and two distinct radio components separated by $\sim 20$~pc \citep{2004ApJ...604L..33Z}. To ascertain the binary nature of this source, we analyzed multi-frequency, multi-epoch very long baseline…
As one of the series of papers reporting on a large reverberation mapping campaign, we apply the maximum entropy method (MEM) to 9 narrow-line Seyfert 1 galaxies with super-Eddington accretion rates observed during 2012-2013 for the velocity-delay maps of their Hβ and Hγ emission lines. The maps of 6 objects are reliably reconstructed using MEM. The maps of Hβ and Hγ emission lines of Mrk 335 indicate that the gas of its broad-line region (BLR) is infalling. For Mrk 142, its Hβ and Hγ lines show signatures of outflow. The Hβ and Hγ maps of Mrk 1044 demonstrate complex kinematics -- a virialize…
Low-luminosity Active Galactic Nuclei, i.e. L_bol/L_edd ~ 10^-6 - 10^-3, constitute the bulk population of Active Galactic Nuclei (AGNs). Powerful jets, common in these objects, are a crucial source of feedback energy driving mass outflows into the host galaxy and the intergalactic medium. This paper reports the first direct measurement of powerful mass outflows traced by the forbidden high ionization gas in the low luminosity AGN NGC1386 at scales of a few parsecs from the central engine. The high angular resolution of the data allows us to directly measure the location, morphology and kinema…
Supermassive Black Hole Winds in X-rays: SUBWAYS IV. Tracing Radio Emission and Unveiling the Role of Winds
Università di Bologna（博洛尼亚大学）；INAF - Istituto di Radioastronomia（意大利国家天体物理研究所射电天文台）；INAF – Istituto di Astrofisica e Planetologia Spaziali（意大利国家天体物理研究所天体物理学和行星科学研究所）；INAF - Osservatorio di Astrofisica e Scienza dello Spazio di Bologna（意大利国家天体物理研究所博洛尼亚天体物理学与空间科学观测站）；ASTRON, the Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy（荷兰射电天文研究所）；Kapteyn Astronomical Institute, University of Groningen（格罗宁根大学卡普坦天文研究所）；Technion（以色列理工学院）；Tor Vergata Universi（托尔维尔加塔大学）
While quasar outflows may be quasi-ubiquitous, there are significant differences on a source-by- source basis. These differences can be organized along the 4D Eigenvector 1 sequence: at least at low z, with only Population A sources radiating at relatively high Eddington ratio and showing prominent high-velocity outflows in Civ λ1549 line profiles. We discuss in this paper VLT-FORS observations of Civ λ1549 emission line profiles for a high-luminosity sample of Hamburg- ESO quasars and how they are affected by outflow motion as a function of quasar luminosity. Our high- luminosity sample has t…
Low-Luminosity Active Galactic Nuclei (LLAGN) are characterized for low radiative efficiency, much less than one percent of their Eddington limit. Nevertheless, their main energy release may be mechanical, opposite to powerful AGN classes like Seyfert and Quasars. This work reports on the jet-driven mechanical energy and the corresponding mass outflow deposited by the jet in the central 170~parsecs of the nearby LLAGN ESO428-G14. The jet kinetic output is traced through the coronal line [Si vi] $λ$19641 Å. It is shown that its radial extension, up to hundreds of parsecs, requires a combination…
The origin of spin of low-mass supermassive black hole (SMBH) is still a puzzle at present. We here report a study on the host galaxies of a sample of radio-selected nearby ($z<0.05$) Seyfert 2 galaxies with a BH mass of $10^{6-7} M_\odot$. By modeling the SDSS $r$-band images of these galaxies through a 2-dimensional bulge+disk decomposition, we identify a new dependence of SMBH's radio power on host bulge surface brightness profile, in which more powerful radio emission comes from a SMBH associated with a more disk-like bulge. This result means low-mass and high-mass SMBHs are spun up by two…
Implication of a galaxy-scale negative feedback by one of the most powerful multi-phase outflows in a hyper-luminous infrared galaxy at the intermediate redshift
本文通过 Gemini 和 ALMA 观测发现中等红移超亮红外星系 J1126 中存在快速电离与高质量损失率分子外流并存的多相外流，揭示其由 AGN 热风或辐射压力驱动，能引发电离激波并增强气体解离，产生星系尺度负反馈，具长期调节宿主增长潜力。
Radio emission from the high- and super-Eddington accreting active galactic nuclei (AGNs) has various origins: a persistent jet, the magnetized corona and the wind-like outflows. It is now still unclear which is the leading mechanism responsible for the observed radio emission and how the radio emission is related to other characteristic parameters such as the Eddington ratio and black hole mass. In this paper, we present the 5 GHz Very Large Array (VLA) observational results of a sample of 25 extremely high Eddington accreting supermassive black holes (EESBHs, the Eddington ratio close to or …
Supermassive black holes (SMBHs) are found in the centres of most galaxies. Their masses, and hence their gravitational potentials, are negligible compared with those of the host galaxy. However, several strong correlations between SMBH masses and host galaxy properties have been observed, notably the $M-σ$ relation connecting the SMBH mass to the characteristic velocity of stars in the galaxy. The existence of these correlations implies that the SMBH influences the evolution of its host galaxy. In this review, we present the most promising physical model of this influence, known as the Active…
Powerful outflows with a broad range of properties (such as velocity, ionization, radial scale and mass loss rate) represent a key feature of active galactic nuclei (AGN), even more so since they have been simultaneously revealed also in individual objects. Here we revisit in a simple analytical framework the recent remarkable cases of two ultraluminous infrared quasars, IRAS F11119+3257 and Mrk 231, which allow us to investigate the physical connection between multi-phase AGN outflows across the ladder of distance from the central supermassive black hole (SMBH). We argue that any major deviat…
There is growing observational evidence of high-redshift quasars launching energetic, fast outflows, but the effects that these have on their host galaxies is poorly understood. We employ the moving-mesh code AREPO to study the feedback from a quasar that has grown to $\sim 10^9 M_\odot$ by $z \sim 5$ and the impact that this has on its host galaxy. Our simulations use a super-Lagrangian refinement technique to increase the accuracy with which the interface of the quasar-driven wind and the surrounding gas is resolved. We find that the feedback injected in these simulations is less efficient a…
Broad absorption line (BAL) features in quasar spectra reveal an unambiguous signature of energetic outflows from central supermassive black holes, and thus BAL quasars are prime targets for investigating the potential process of luminous quasar feedback on galaxies. We analyzed the rest-UV spectrum of an "overlapping trough" iron low-ionization broad absorption line quasar (FeLoBAL) SDSS J135246.37+423923.5 using the novel spectral synthesis code SimBAL (Leighly et al. 2018) and discovered an extraordinarily fast and energetic BAL outflow. Our analysis revealed outflow velocities reaching $\s…
Galaxy-scale outflows powered by actively accreting supermassive black holes are routinely detected, and they have been associated both with suppression and triggering of star formation. Recent observational evidence and simulations are favouring a delayed mechanism that connects outflows and star formation
Accretion of matter onto central Black Holes (BHs) in galaxies liberates enormous amounts of feedback energy, which influence the formation and evolution of structures, affecting the environment from pc to Mpc scales. These BHs are usually Supermassive BHs (SMBHs: mass $\geq 10^6 M_{\odot}$) existing at the centers of active galactic nuclei (AGN), which are widely observed through their multi-wavelength emission at all cosmic epochs. The SMBH energy output is often observed as powerful AGN outflows in a wide variety of forms. Relatively recently, Intermediate-Mass BHs (IMBHs: mass = $100 - 10^…
Both observational and theoretical evidence point at outflows originating from accretion disks as fundamental ingredients of active galactic nuclei (AGN). These outflows can have more than one component, for example an unbound supersonic wind and a failed wind (FW). The latter is a prediction of the simulations of radiation-driven disk outflows which show that the former is accompanied by an inner failed component, where the flow struggles to escape from the strong gravitational pull of the supermassive black hole. This FW component could provide a physical framework to interpret various pheno…
Models and observations suggest that both power and effects of AGN feedback should be maximised in hyper-luminous (L_Bol>10^47 erg/s) quasars, i.e. objects at the brightest end of the AGN luminosity function. We present the first results of a multi-wavelength observing program, focusing on a sample of WISE/SDSS selected hyper-luminous (WISSH) broad-line quasars at z~1.5-5. The WISSH quasars project has been designed to reveal the most energetic AGN-driven outflows, estimate their occurrence at the peak of quasar activity and extend the study of correlations between outflows and nuclear propert…
For type-1 active galactic nuclei (AGNs) for which the equatorial scattering is the dominant broad line polarization mechanism, it is possible to measure the supermassive black hole mass by tracing the Keplerian motion across the polarization plane positionangle. So far this method has been used for 30 objects but only for H$α$ emission line. We explore the possibilities this method for determining SMBH masses using polarization in broad emission lines by applying it for the first time to Mg II$λ$2798AA spectral line. We use 3D Monte Carlo radiative transfer code stokes for simultaneous modeli…
Quasar-driven outflows must have made their most significant impact on galaxy formation during the epoch when massive galaxies were forming most rapidly. To study the impact of quasar feedback we conducted rest-frame optical integral field spectrograph (IFS) observations of three extremely red quasars (ERQs) and one type-2 quasar at $z=2-3$, obtained with the NIFS and OSIRIS instruments at the Gemini North and W. M. Keck Observatory with the assistance of laser-guided adaptive optics. We use the kinematics and morphologies of the [OIII] 5007Åand H$α$ 6563Åemission lines redshifted into the nea…
Radio-dust connection in quasars driven by powerful ionised outflows
European Southern Observatory (ESO)（欧洲南方天文台）；Newcastle University（纽卡斯尔大学）；Durham University（杜伦大学）；Max-Planck-Institut für Extraterrestrische Physik（马克斯·普朗克地外物理研究所）；University of Oxford（牛津大学）；Institut de Radioastronomie Millimétrique (IRAM)（毫米波射电天文研究所）
We present a detailed study of AGN feedback in the narrow-line region (NLR) of the Seyfert 1 galaxy NGC 4151. We illustrate the data and techniques needed to determine the mass outflow rate and kinetic luminosity of the outflowing ionized gas as a function of position in the NLR. We find that the mass outflow rate peaks at a value of 3 solar masses per year at a distance of 70 pc from the central supermassive black hole (SMBH), which is about 10 times the outflow rate coming from inside 13 pc, and 230 times the mass accretion rate inferred from the bolometric luminosity of NGC 4151. Thus, most…
Massive outflows of neutral atomic hydrogen (HI) have been observed in absorption in a number of radio galaxies and are considered a signature of AGN feedback. These outflows on kpc-scales have not been investigated in great detail as they require high-angular resolution observations to be spatially resolved. In some radio AGN, they are likely the result of the radio jets interacting with the interstellar medium. We have used a global VLBI array to map the HI outflow in a small sample of young and restarted radio galaxies which we previously observed with the VLA and the WSRT at lower resoluti…
We use Gemini Near-Infrared Integral Field Spectrograph (NIFS) observations of the inner 3.5$\times$3.5 kpc$^2$ of the radio galaxy Cygnus A to map the gas excitation and kinematics at a spatial resolution of 200 pc. The emission of the ionised gas shows a biconical morphology, with half-opening angle of 45$^\circ$ and oriented along the position angle of the radio jet. Coronal line emission is seen within the cone, up to 1.75 kpc from the nucleus, with higher ionisation gas observed in the easterly side. The H$_2$ and [Fe II] emission lines are consistent with excitation by the central AGN, w…
The properties of quasar-host galaxies might be determined by the growth and feedback of their supermassive (SMBH, $10^{8-10}$ M$_{\odot}$) black holes. We investigate such connection with a suite of cosmological simulations of massive (halo mass $\approx 10^{12}$ M$_{\odot}$) galaxies at $z\simeq 6$ which include a detailed sub-grid multiphase gas and accretion model. BH seeds of initial mass $10^5$ M$_{\odot}$ grow mostly by gas accretion, and become SMBH by $z=6$ setting on the observed $M_{\rm BH} - M_{\star}$ relation without the need for a boost factor. Although quasar feedback crucially…
We have modeled direct collapse of a primordial gas within dark matter halos in the presence of radiative transfer, in high-resolution zoom-in simulations in a cosmological framework, down to the formation of the photosphere and the central object. Radiative transfer has been implemented in the flux-limited diffusion (FLD) approximation. Adiabatic models were run for comparison. We find that (a) the FLD flow forms an irregular central structure and does not exhibit fragmentation, contrary to adiabatic flow which forms a thick disk, driving a pair of spiral shocks, subject to Kelvin-Helmholtz s…
