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At least 793 records · Page 44
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DOE OSTI2012

THE CHANDRA VIEW OF NGC 4178: THE LOWEST MASS BLACK HOLE IN A BULGELESS DISK GALAXY?

Using high-resolution Chandra data, we report the presence of a weak X-ray point source coincident with the nucleus of NGC 4178, a late-type bulgeless disk galaxy known to have high-ionization mid-infrared (mid-IR) lines typically associated with active galactic nuclei (AGNs). Although the faintness of this source precludes a direct spectral analysis, we are able to infer its basic spectral properties using hardness ratios. X-ray modeling, combined with the nuclear mid-IR characteristics, suggests that NGC 4178 may host a highly absorbed AGN accreting at a high rate with a bolometric luminosity on order of 10{sup 43} erg s{sup -1}. The black hole mass estimate, based on our Chandra data and archival Very Large Array data using the most recent fundamental plane relations, is {approx}10{sup 4}-10{sup 5} M{sub Sun }, possibly the lowest mass nuclear black hole currently known. There are also three off-nuclear sources, two with a similar brightness to the nuclear source at 36'' and 32'' from the center. As with the nuclear source, hardness ratios are used to estimate spectra for these two sources, and both are consistent with a simple power-law (PL) model with absorption. These two sources have X-ray luminosities of the order of {approx}10{sup 38} erg s{sup -1}, which place them at the threshold between X-ray binaries and ultraluminous X-ray sources (ULXs). The third off-nuclear source, located 49'' from the center, is the brightest source detected, with an X-ray luminosity of {approx}10{sup 40} erg s{sup -1}. Its spectrum is well fit with an absorbed PL model, suggesting that it is a ULX. We also fit its spectrum with the Bulk Motion Comptonization model and suggest that this source is consistent with an intermediate-mass black hole of mass (6 {+-} 2) Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 3} M{sub Sun }.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2012

ACCURATE SIMULATIONS OF BINARY BLACK HOLE MERGERS IN FORCE-FREE ELECTRODYNAMICS

We provide additional information on our recent study of the electromagnetic emission produced during the inspiral and merger of supermassive black holes when these are immersed in a force-free plasma threaded by a uniform magnetic field. As anticipated in a recent letter, our results show that although a dual-jet structure is present, the associated luminosity is {approx}100 times smaller than the total one, which is predominantly quadrupolar. Here we discuss the details of our implementation of the equations in which the force-free condition is not implemented at a discrete level, but rather obtained via a damping scheme which drives the solution to satisfy the correct condition. We show that this is important for a correct and accurate description of the current sheets that can develop in the course of the simulation. We also study in greater detail the three-dimensional charge distribution produced as a consequence of the inspiral and show that during the inspiral it possesses a complex but ordered structure which traces the motion of the two black holes. Finally, we provide quantitative estimates of the scaling of the electromagnetic emission with frequency, with the diffused part having a dependence that is the same as the gravitational-wave one and that scales as L{sup non-coll}{sub EM} Almost-Equal-To {Omega}{sup 10/3-8/3}, while the collimated one scales as L{sup coll}{sub EM} Almost-Equal-To {Omega}{sup 5/3-6/3}, thus with a steeper dependence than previously estimated. We discuss the impact of these results on the potential detectability of dual jets from supermassive black holes and the steps necessary for more accurate estimates.

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DOE OSTI2012

SUPERMASSIVE BLACK HOLES, PSEUDOBULGES, AND THE NARROW-LINE SEYFERT 1 GALAXIES

We present Hubble Space Telescope Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) observations of 10 galaxies that host narrow-line Seyfert 1 (NLS1) nuclei, believed to contain relatively smaller mass black holes accreting at high Eddington ratios. We deconvolve each ACS image into a nuclear point source (AGN), a bulge, and a disk, and fitted the bulge with a Sersic profile and the disk with an exponential profile. We find that at least five galaxies can be classified as having pseudobulges. All 10 galaxies lie below the M{sub BH}-L{sub bulge} relation, confirming earlier results. Their locus is similar to that occupied by pseudobulges. This leads us to conclude that the growth of BHs in NLS1s is governed by secular processes rather than merger driven. Active galaxies in pseudobulges point to an alternative track of black hole-galaxy co-evolution. Because of the intrinsic scatter in black hole mass-bulge properties scaling relations caused by a combination of factors such as the galaxy morphology, orientation, and redshift evolution, application of scaling relations to determine BH masses may not be as straightforward as has been hoped.

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DOE OSTI2012

A STAR DISRUPTED BY A STELLAR BLACK HOLE AS THE ORIGIN OF THE CLOUD FALLING TOWARD THE GALACTIC CENTER

We propose that the cloud moving on a highly eccentric orbit near the central black hole in our Galaxy, reported by Gillessen et al., is formed by a photoevaporation wind originating in a disk around a star that is tidally perturbed and shocked at every peribothron passage. The disk is proposed to have formed when a stellar black hole flew by the star, tidally disrupted its envelope, and placed the star on its present orbit with some of the tidal debris forming a disk. A disrupting encounter at the location of the observed cloud is most likely to be caused by a stellar black hole because of the expected dynamical mass segregation; the rate of these disk-forming encounters may be as high as {approx}10{sup -6} per year. The star should also be spun up by the encounter, so the disk may subsequently expand by absorbing angular momentum from the star. Once the disk expands up to the tidal truncation radius, the tidal perturbation of the outer disk edge at every peribothron may place gas streams on larger orbits, which can give rise to a photoevaporation wind that forms the cloud at every orbit. This model predicts that, after the cloud is disrupted at the next peribothron passage in 2013, a smaller unresolved cloud will gradually grow around the star on the same present orbit. An increased infrared luminosity from the disk may also be detectable when the peribothron is reached. We also note that this model revives the encounter theory for planet formation.

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DOE OSTI2012

MASSES OF NEARBY SUPERMASSIVE BLACK HOLES WITH VERY LONG BASELINE INTERFEROMETRY

Dynamical mass measurements to date have allowed determinations of the mass M and the distance D of a number of nearby supermassive black holes. In the case of Sgr A*, these measurements are limited by a strong correlation between the mass and distance scaling roughly as M {approx} D {sup 2}. Future very long baseline interferometric (VLBI) observations will image a bright and narrow ring surrounding the shadow of a supermassive black hole, if its accretion flow is optically thin. In this paper, we explore the prospects of reducing the correlation between mass and distance with the combination of dynamical measurements and VLBI imaging of the ring of Sgr A*. We estimate the signal-to-noise ratio of near-future VLBI arrays that consist of five to six stations, and we simulate measurements of the mass and distance of Sgr A* using the expected size of the ring image and existing stellar ephemerides. We demonstrate that, in this best-case scenario, VLBI observations at 1 mm can improve the error on the mass by a factor of about two compared to the results from the monitoring of stellar orbits alone. We identify the additional sources of uncertainty that such imaging observations have to take into account. In addition, we calculate the angular diameters of the bright rings of other nearby supermassive black holes and identify the optimal targets besides Sgr A* that could be imaged by a ground-based VLBI array or future space-VLBI missions allowing for refined mass measurements.

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DOE OSTI2012

EFFECTS OF COMPTON COOLING ON OUTFLOW IN A TWO-COMPONENT ACCRETION FLOW AROUND A BLACK HOLE: RESULTS OF A COUPLED MONTE CARLO TOTAL VARIATION DIMINISHING SIMULATION

We investigate the effects of cooling of the Compton cloud on the outflow formation rate in an accretion disk around a black hole. We carry out a time-dependent numerical simulation where both the hydrodynamics and the radiative transfer processes are coupled together. We consider a two-component accretion flow in which the Keplerian disk is immersed into an accreting low-angular momentum flow (halo) around a black hole. The soft photons which originate from the Keplerian disk are inverse-Comptonized by the electrons in the halo and the region between the centrifugal pressure supported shocks and the horizon. We run several cases by changing the rate of the Keplerian disk and see the effects on the shock location and properties of the outflow and the spectrum. We show that as a result of Comptonization of the Compton cloud, the cloud becomes cooler with the increase in the Keplerian disk rate. As the resultant thermal pressure is reduced, the post-shock region collapses and the outflow rate is also reduced. Since the hard radiation is produced from the post-shock region, and the spectral slope increases with the reduction of the electron temperature, the cooling produces softer spectrum. We thus find a direct correlation between the spectral states and the outflow rates of an accreting black hole.

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DOE OSTI2012

THREE-DIMENSIONAL RADIATIVE TRANSFER CALCULATIONS OF RADIATION FEEDBACK FROM MASSIVE BLACK HOLES: OUTFLOW OF MASS FROM THE DUSTY 'TORUS'

Observational and theoretical arguments suggest that the momentum carried in mass outflows from active galactic nuclei (AGNs) can reach several times L/c, corresponding to outflow rates of hundreds of solar masses per year. Radiation pressure on resonant absorption lines alone may not be sufficient to provide this momentum deposition, and the transfer of reprocessed IR radiation in dusty nuclear gas has been postulated to provide the extra enhancement. The efficacy of this mechanism, however, will be sensitive to multi-dimensional effects such as the tendency for the reprocessed radiation to preferentially escape along sightlines of lower column density. We use Monte Carlo radiative transfer calculations to determine the radiation force on dusty gas residing within approximately 30 parsecs from an accreting supermassive black hole. We calculate the net rate of momentum deposition in the surrounding gas and estimate the mass-loss rate in the resulting outflow as a function of solid angle for different black hole luminosities, sightline-averaged column densities, clumping parameters, and opening angles of the dusty gas. We find that these dust-driven winds carry momentum fluxes of 1-5 times L/c and correspond to mass-loss rates of 10-100 M {sub Sun} per year for a 10{sup 8} M {sub Sun} black hole radiating at or near its Eddington limit. These results help to explain the origin of high velocity molecular and atomic outflows in local ultraluminous infrared galaxies and can inform numerical simulations of galaxy evolution including AGN feedback.

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DOE OSTI2012

MODERATE-LUMINOSITY GROWING BLACK HOLES FROM 1.25 < z < 2.7: VARIED ACCRETION IN DISK-DOMINATED HOSTS

We compute black hole masses and bolometric luminosities for 57 active galactic nuclei (AGNs) in the redshift range 1.25 {<=} z {<=} 2.67, selected from the GOODS-South deep multi-wavelength survey field via their X-ray emission. We determine host galaxy morphological parameters by separating the galaxies from their central point sources in deep Hubble Space Telescope images, and host stellar masses and colors by multi-wavelength spectral energy distribution fitting. Of GOODS AGNs at these redshifts, 90% have detected rest-frame optical nuclear point sources; bolometric luminosities range from 2 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 43} to 2 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 46} erg s{sup -1}. The black holes are growing at a range of accretion rates, with {approx}> 50% of the sample having L/L{sub Edd} < 0.1. Of the host galaxies, 70% have stellar masses M{sub *} > 10{sup 10} M{sub Sun }, with a range of colors suggesting a complex star formation history. We find no evolution of AGN bolometric luminosity within the sample, and no correlation between AGN bolometric luminosity and host stellar mass, color, or morphology. Fully half the sample of host galaxies are disk-dominated, with another 25% having strong disk components. Fewer than 15% of the systems appear to be at some stage of a major merger. These moderate-luminosity AGN hosts are therefore inconsistent with a dynamical history dominated by mergers strong enough to destroy disks, indicating that minor mergers or secular processes dominate the coevolution of galaxies and their central black holes at z {approx} 2.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2013

IS THERE AN INTERMEDIATE MASSIVE BLACK HOLE IN THE GALACTIC CENTER: IMPRINTS ON THE STELLAR TIDAL-DISRUPTION RATE

It has been suggested that an intermediate-massive black hole (IMBH) with mass 10{sup 3-5} M {sub Sun} could fall into the galactic center (GC) and form a massive black hole binary (MBHB) with the central supermassive black hole, but current observations are not sensitive to constrain all mass and distance ranges. Motivated by the recent discovery that MBHBs could enhance the rate of tidal-disruption events (TDEs) of stellar objects, we investigate the prospect of using stellar-disruption rate to probe IMBHs in the GC. We incorporated the perturbation by an IMBH into the loss-cone theory and calculated the stellar-disruption rates in the GC. We found that an IMBH heavier than 2000 M {sub Sun} could distinguishably enhance the stellar-disruption rate. By comparing observations of Sgr A* with the fall-back model for stellar debris, we suggested that the TDE rate in our Galaxy should not significantly exceed 0.002 yr{sup -1}, therefore a fraction of the parameter space for the IMBH, concentrating at the high-mass end, can already be excluded. To derive constraint in the remaining parameter space, it is crucial to observationally confirm or reject the stellar-disruption rate between 10{sup -4} and 10{sup -2} yr{sup -1}, and we discussed possible strategies to make such measurements.

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DOE OSTI2013

CHARACTERIZATION OF A SAMPLE OF INTERMEDIATE-TYPE ACTIVE GALACTIC NUCLEI. II. HOST BULGE PROPERTIES AND BLACK HOLE MASS ESTIMATES

We present a study of the host bulge properties and their relations with the black hole mass for a sample of 10 intermediate-type active galactic nuclei (AGNs). Our sample consists mainly of early-type spirals, four of them hosting a bar. For 70{sup +10} {sub -17}% of the galaxies, we have been able to determine the type of the bulge, and find that these objects probably harbor a pseudobulge or a combination of classical bulge/pseudobulge, suggesting that pseudobulges might be frequent in intermediate-type AGNs. In our sample, 50% {+-} 14% of the objects show double-peaked emission lines. Therefore, narrow double-peaked emission lines seem to be frequent in galaxies harboring a pseudobulge or a combination of classical bulge/pseudobulge. Depending on the bulge type, we estimated the black hole mass using the corresponding M {sub BH}-{sigma}* relation and found them within a range of 5.69 {+-} 0.21 < log M {sup {sigma}}*{sub BH} < 8.09 {+-} 0.24. Comparing these M {sup {sigma}}*{sub BH} values with masses derived from the FWHM of H{beta} and the continuum luminosity at 5100 A from their SDSS-DR7 spectra (M {sub BH}), we find that 8 out of 10 (80{sup +7} {sub -17}%) galaxies have black hole masses that are compatible within a factor of 3. This result would support that M {sub BH} and M {sup {sigma}}*{sub BH} are the same for intermediate-type AGNs, as has been found for type 1 AGNs. However, when the type of the bulge is taken into account, only three out of the seven (43{sup +18} {sub -15}%) objects of the sample have their M {sup {sigma}}*{sub BH} and M {sub BH} compatible within 3{sigma} errors. We also find that estimations based on the M {sub BH}-{sigma}* relation for pseudobulges are not compatible in 50% {+-} 20% of the objects.

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DOE OSTI2013

VARIABILITY OF GAMMA-RAY EMISSION FROM BLAZARS ON BLACK HOLE TIMESCALES

We investigate the variability properties of blazars in the GeV band using data from the Fermi/Large Area Telescope (LAT) telescope. We find that blazars exhibit variability down to the minimum timescale resolvable by Fermi; this variability is a function of the peak photon count rate in the LAT. This implies that the real minimum variability timescales for the majority of blazars are typically shorter than those resolvable by the LAT. We find that for several blazars these minimum variability timescales reach those associated with the blazar central engine, the supermassive black hole. At the same time, none of the blazars exhibits variability on a timescale shorter than the black hole horizon light-crossing time and/or the period of rotation around the last stable circular orbit. Based on this fact, we argue that the timing properties of the {gamma}-ray signal could be determined by the processes in the direct vicinity of the supermassive black hole.

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DOE OSTI2013

THE NOT-SO-MASSIVE BLACK HOLE IN THE MICROQUASAR GRS1915+105

We present a new dynamical study of the black hole X-ray transient GRS1915+105 making use of near-infrared spectroscopy obtained with X-shooter at the Very Large Telescope. We detect a large number of donor star absorption features across a wide range of wavelengths spanning the H and K bands. Our 24 epochs covering a baseline of over 1 yr permit us to determine a new binary ephemeris including a refined orbital period of P = 33.85 {+-} 0.16 days. The donor star radial velocity curves deliver a significantly improved determination of the donor semi-amplitude which is both accurate (K{sub 2} = 126 {+-} 1 km s{sup -1}) and robust against choice of donor star template and spectral features used. We furthermore constrain the donor star's rotational broadening to vsin i = 21 {+-} 4 km s{sup -1}, delivering a binary mass ratio of q = 0.042 {+-} 0.024. If we combine these new constraints with distance and inclination estimates derived from modeling the radio emission, a black hole mass of M{sub BH} = 10.1 {+-} 0.6 M{sub Sun} is inferred, paired with an evolved mass donor of M{sub 2} = 0.47 {+-} 0.27 M{sub Sun }. Our analysis suggests a more typical black hole mass for GRS1915+105 rather than the unusually high values derived in the pioneering dynamical study by Greiner et al. Our data demonstrate that high-resolution infrared spectroscopy of obscured accreting binaries can deliver dynamical mass determinations with a precision on par with optical studies.

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DOE OSTI2013

A SWIFT SURVEY OF ACCRETION ONTO STELLAR-MASS BLACK HOLES

We present a systemic analysis of all of the stellar-mass black hole binaries (confirmed and candidate) observed by the Swift observatory up to 2010 June. The broad Swift bandpass enables a trace of disk evolution over an unprecedented range in flux and temperature. The final data sample consists of 476 X-ray spectra containing greater than 100 counts, in the 0.6-10 keV band. This is the largest sample of high-quality CCD spectra of accreting black holes published to date. In addition, strictly simultaneous data at optical/UV wavelengths are available for 255 (54%) of these observations. The data are modeled with a combination of an accretion disk and a hard spectral component. For the hard component we consider both a simple power-law model and a thermal Comptonization model. An accretion disk is detected at greater than the 5{sigma} confidence level in 61% of the observations. Light curves and color-color diagrams are constructed for each system. Hardness-luminosity and disk fraction-luminosity diagrams are constructed and are observed to be consistent with those typically observed by RXTE, noting the sensitivity below 2 keV provided by Swift. The observed spectra have an average luminosity of {approx}1% Eddington, though we are sensitive to accretion disks down to a luminosity of 10{sup -3} L{sub Edd}. Thus, this is also the largest sample of such cool accretion disks studied to date. The accretion disk temperature distribution displays two peaks consistent with the classical hard and soft spectral states, with a smaller number of disks distributed between these. The distribution of inner disk radii is observed to be continuous regardless of which model is used to fit the hard continua. There is no evidence for large-scale truncation of the accretion disk in the hard state (at least for L{sub x} {approx}> 10{sup -3} L{sub Edd}), with all of the accretion disks having radii {approx}< 40 R{sub g} . Plots of the accretion disk inner radius versus hardness ratio reveal the disk radius to be decreasing as the spectrum hardens, i.e., enters the hard state. This is in contrast to expectations from the standard disk truncation paradigm and points toward a contribution from spectral hardening. The availability of simultaneous X-ray and optical/UV data for a subset of observations facilitates a critical examination of the role of disk irradiation via a modified disk model with a variable emissivity profile (i.e., T(r){proportional_to}r {sup -p}). The broadband spectra (X-ray-optical/UV) reveal irradiation of the accretion disk to be an important effect at all luminosities sampled herein, i.e., p {approx}< 0.75 for luminosities {approx}> 10{sup -3} L{sub Edd}. The accretion disk is found to dominate the UV emission irrespective of the assumed hard spectral component. Overall, we find the broadband soft-state spectra to be consistent with an irradiated accretion disk plus a corona, but we are unable to make conclusive statements regarding the nature of the hard-state accretion flow (e.g., ADAF/corona versus jet). Finally, the Swift data reveal a relation between the flux emitted by the accretion disk and that emitted by the corona, for this sample of stellar-mass black holes, that is found to be in broad agreement with the observed disk-corona relationship in Seyfert galaxies, suggesting a scale invariant coupling between the accretion disk and the corona.

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DOE OSTI2013

The velocity dispersion profile of NGC 6388 from resolved-star spectroscopy: No evidence of a central cusp and new constraints on the black hole mass

By combining high spatial resolution and wide-field spectroscopy performed, respectively, with SINFONI and FLAMES at the ESO/VLT we measured the radial velocities of more than 600 stars in the direction of NGC 6388, a Galactic globular cluster which is suspected to host an intermediate-mass black hole. Approximately 55% of the observed targets turned out to be cluster members. The cluster velocity dispersion has been derived from the radial velocity of individual stars: 52 measurements in the innermost 2'', and 276 stars located between 18'' and 600''. The velocity dispersion profile shows a central value of ∼13 km s{sup –1}, a flat behavior out to ∼60'' and a decreasing trend outward. The comparison with spherical and isotropic models shows that the observed density and velocity dispersion profiles are inconsistent with the presence of a central black hole more massive than ∼2000 M {sub ☉}. These findings are at odds with recent results obtained from integrated light spectra, showing a velocity dispersion profile with a steep central cusp of 23-25 km s{sup –1} at r < 2'' and suggesting the presence of a black hole with a mass of ∼1.7 × 10{sup 4} M {sub ☉}. We also found some evidence of systemic rotation with amplitude A {sub rot} ∼ 8 km s{sup –1} in the innermost 2'' (0.13 pc), decreasing to A {sub rot} = 3.2 km s{sup –1} at 18'' < r < 160''.

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DOE OSTI2013

Further evidence for a supermassive black hole mass-pitch angle relation

We present new and stronger evidence for a previously reported relationship between galactic spiral arm pitch angle P (a measure of the tightness of spiral structure) and the mass M {sub BH} of a disk galaxy's nuclear supermassive black hole (SMBH). We use an improved method to accurately measure the spiral arm pitch angle in disk galaxies to generate quantitative data on this morphological feature for 34 galaxies with directly measured black hole masses. We find a relation of log (M/M {sub ☉}) = (8.21 ± 0.16) – (0.062 ± 0.009)P. This method is compared with other means of estimating black hole mass to determine its effectiveness and usefulness relative to other existing relations. We argue that such a relationship is predicted by leading theories of spiral structure in disk galaxies, including the density wave theory. We propose this relationship as a tool for estimating SMBH masses in disk galaxies. This tool is potentially superior when compared to other methods for this class of galaxy and has the advantage of being unambiguously measurable from imaging data alone.

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DOE OSTI2013

X-RAY SPECTRA FROM MAGNETOHYDRODYNAMIC SIMULATIONS OF ACCRETING BLACK HOLES

We present the results of a new global radiation transport code coupled to a general relativistic magnetohydrodynamic simulation of an accreting, non-rotating black hole. For the first time, we are able to explain from first principles in a self-consistent way all the components seen in the X-ray spectra of stellar-mass black holes, including a thermal peak and all the features associated with strong hard X-ray emission: a power law extending to high energies, a Compton reflection hump, and a broad iron line. Varying only the mass accretion rate, we are able to reproduce a wide range of X-ray states seen in most galactic black hole sources. The temperature in the corona is T{sub e} {approx} 10 keV in a boundary layer near the disk and rises smoothly to T{sub e} {approx}> 100 keV in low-density regions far above the disk. Even as the disk's reflection edge varies from the horizon out to Almost-Equal-To 6M as the accretion rate decreases, we find that the shape of the Fe K{alpha} line is remarkably constant. This is because photons emitted from the plunging region are strongly beamed into the horizon and never reach the observer. We have also carried out a basic timing analysis of the spectra and find that the fractional variability increases with photon energy and viewer inclination angle, consistent with the coronal hot spot model for X-ray fluctuations.

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DOE OSTI2013

REDSHIFT 6.4 HOST GALAXIES OF 10{sup 8} SOLAR MASS BLACK HOLES: LOW STAR FORMATION RATE AND DYNAMICAL MASS

We present Atacama Large Millimeter Array observations of rest-frame far-infrared continuum and [C II] line emission in two z = 6.4 quasars with black hole masses of Almost-Equal-To 10{sup 8} M{sub Sun }. CFHQS J0210-0456 is detected in the continuum with a 1.2 mm flux of 120 {+-} 35 {mu}Jy, whereas CFHQS J2329-0301 is undetected at a similar noise level. J2329-0301 has a star formation rate limit of <40 M{sub Sun} yr{sup -1}, considerably below the typical value at all redshifts for this bolometric luminosity. Through comparison with hydro simulations, we speculate that this quasar is observed at a relatively rare phase where quasar feedback has effectively shut down star formation in the host galaxy. [C II] emission is also detected only in J0210-0456. The ratio of [C II] to far-infrared luminosity is similar to that of low-redshift galaxies of comparable luminosity, suggesting that the previous finding of an offset in the relationships between this ratio and far-infrared luminosity at low and high redshifts may be partially due to a selection effect due to the limited sensitivity of previous continuum data. The [C II] line of J0210-0456 is relatively narrow (FWHM = 189 {+-} 18 km s{sup -1}), indicating a dynamical mass substantially lower than expected from the local black hole-velocity dispersion correlation. The [C II] line is marginally resolved at 0.''7 resolution with the blue and red wings spatially offset by 0.''5 (3 kpc) and a smooth velocity gradient of 100 km s{sup -1} across a scale of 6 kpc, possibly due to the rotation of a galaxy-wide disk. These observations are consistent with the idea that stellar mass growth lags black hole accretion for quasars at this epoch with respect to more recent times.

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DOE OSTI2013

THE RESPONSE OF METAL-RICH GAS TO X-RAY IRRADIATION FROM A MASSIVE BLACK HOLE AT HIGH REDSHIFT: PROOF OF CONCEPT

Observational studies show that there is a strong link between the formation and evolution of galaxies and the growth of their supermassive black holes. However, the underlying physics behind this observed relation is poorly understood. In order to study the effects of X-ray radiation on black hole surroundings, we implement X-ray-dominated region physics into Enzo and use the radiation transport module Moray to calculate the radiative transfer for a polychromatic spectrum. In this work, we investigate the effects of X-ray irradiation, produced by a central massive black hole (MBH) with a mass of M = 5 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 4} M{sub Sun }, on ambient gas with solar and zero metallicity. We find that in the solar metallicity case, the energy deposition rate in the central region ({<=}20 pc) is high due to the high opacity of the metals. Hence, the central temperatures are on the order of 10{sup 5}-10{sup 7} K. Moreover, due to the cooling ability and high intrinsic opacity of solar metallicity gas, column densities of 10{sup 24} cm{sup -2} are reached at a radius of 20 pc from the MBH. These column densities are about three orders of magnitudes higher than in the zero metallicity case. Furthermore, in the zero metallicity case, an X-ray-induced H II region is already formed after 5.8 Myr. This causes a significant outflow of gas ({approx}8 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 6} M{sub Sun }) from the central region; the gas reaches outflow velocities up to {approx}100 km s{sup -1}. At later times, {approx}23 Myr after we insert the MBH, we find that the solar metallicity case also develops an X-ray-induced H II region, but it is delayed by {approx}17 Myr compared to the zero metallicity case.

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