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arXiv 2006.01113astro-ph.GA
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活动星系中的化学丰度

Chemical Abundances in Active Galaxies

Sophia R. Flury, Edward C. Moran

摘要:

斯隆数字巡天(SDSS)已被证明是了解本宇宙中恒星形成星系的物理性质和化学组成的强大资源。活动星系核(AGN)的SDSS人口仍然是在这方面探索较少。为了将SDSS中的\ion{H}{ii}区域的严格研究扩展到AGN,我们调整了用于计算AGN窄线区域(NLR)的直接方法化学丰度的方法。通过解释氚离子化的氧,我们能够更完整地估计总的氧丰度。我们发现,由于碰撞冷却金属的电子温度和氧丰度之间的强相关性。此外,我们发现活动星系核中的氮和氧丰度是强相关的。从金属的温度关系和氮和氧丰度的耦合,我们开发了一种新的,经验和物理动机的方法来确定化学丰度的强发射线中常用的通量比诊断图(BPT图)。我们的方法,AGN减少到一个单一的方程的基础上的BPT线比,一贯恢复直接方法丰度超过1.5德克斯范围内的氧丰度与均方根的不确定性为0.18德克斯。我们已经确定了数以千计的活动星系核在SDSS的金属丰度,并在此过程中发现了电离相关的塞弗特和LINER星系的星系核。

英文摘要:

The Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) has proved to be a powerful resource for understanding the physical properties and chemical composition of star-forming galaxies in the local universe. The SDSS population of active galactic nuclei (AGN) remains as of yet less explored in this capacity. To extend the rigorous study of \ion{H}{ii} regions in the SDSS to AGN, we adapt methods for computing direct-method chemical abundances for application to the narrow-line regions (NLR) of AGN. By accounting for triply-ionized oxygen, we are able to more completely estimate the total oxygen abundance. We find a strong correlation between electron temperature and oxygen abundance due to collisional cooling by metals. Furthermore, we find that nitrogen and oxygen abundances in AGN are strongly correlated. From the metal-temperature relation and the coupling of nitrogen and oxygen abundances, we develop a new, empirically and physically motivated method for determining chemical abundances from the strong emission lines commonly employed in flux-ratio diagnostic diagrams (BPT diagrams). Our approach, which for AGN reduces to a single equation based on the BPT line ratios, consistently recovers direct-method abundances over a 1.5 dex range in oxygen abundance with an rms uncertainty of 0.18 dex. We have determined metallicities for thousands of AGN in the SDSS, and in the process have discovered an ionization-related discriminator for Seyfert and LINER galaxies.

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