Constraining halo occupation properties of X-ray AGNs using clustering of Chandra sources in the Bootes survey region

We present one of the most precise measurement to date of the spatial clustering of X-ray selected AGNs using a sample derived from the Chandra X-ray Observatory survey in the Bootes field. The real-space two-point correlation function over a redshift interval from z=0.17 to z~3 is well described by the power law, xi(r)=(r/r0)^-gamma, for comoving separations r<~20h^-1 Mpc. We find gamma=1.84+-0.12 and r0 consistent with no redshift trend within the sample (varying between r0=5.5+-0.6 h^-1 Mpc for =0.37 and r0=6.9+-1.0 h^-1 Mpc for =1.28). Further, we are able to measure the projections of the two-point correlation function both on the sky plane and in the line of sight. We use these measurements to show that the Chandra/Bootes AGNs are predominantly located at the centers of dark matter halos with the circular velocity Vmax>320 km/s or M_200 > 4.1e12 h^-1 Msun, and tend to avoid satellite galaxies in halos of this or higher mass. The halo occupation properties inferred from the clustering properties of Chandra/Bootes AGNs --- the mass scale of the parent dark matter halos, the lack of significant redshift evolution of the clustering length, and the low satellite fraction --- are broadly consistent with the Hopkins et al. scenario of quasar activity triggered by mergers of similarly-sized galaxies.Comment: Accepted to ApJ. The revision matches the accepted version. The most significant changes include the recalculation of uncertainties using mock catalogs and explicit comparison with the AGN HOD studies based on projected correlation function, w(rp

Chandra COSMOS Legacy Survey : Clustering dependence of Type 2 active galactic nuclei on host galaxy properties

Aims. We perform clustering measurements of 800 X-ray selected Chandra COSMOS Legacy (CCL) Type 2 active galactic nuclei (AGN) with known spectroscopic redshift to probe the halo mass dependence on AGN host galaxy properties, such as galaxy stellar mass M-star, star formation rate (SFR), and specific black hole accretion rate (BHAR; lambda(BHAR)) in the redshift range z;=;[0-3]. Methods. We split the sample of AGN with known spectroscopic redshits according to M-star, SFR and lambda(BHAR), while matching the distributions in terms of the other parameters, including redshift. We measured the projected two-point correlation function w(p)(r(p)) and modeled the clustering signal, for the different subsamples, with the two-halo term to derive the large-scale bias b and corresponding typical mass of the hosting halo. Results. We find no significant dependence of the large-scale bias and typical halo mass on galaxy stellar mass and specific BHAR for CCL Type 2 AGN at mean z;similar to;1, while a negative dependence on SFR is observed, i.e. lower SFR AGN reside in richer environment. Mock catalogs of AGN, matched to have the same X-ray luminosity, stellar mass, lambda(BHAR), and SFR of CCL Type 2 AGN, almost reproduce the observed M-star - M-h, lambda(BHAR) - M-h and SFR-M-h relations, when assuming a fraction of satellite AGN f(AGN)(sat) similar to 0.15fAGNsat similar to 0.15$f_{\mathrm{AGN}}{\mathrm{sat}} \sim 0.15$. This corresponds to a ratio of the probabilities of satellite to central AGN of being active Q;similar to;2. Mock matched normal galaxies follow a slightly steeper M-star - M-h relation, in which low mass mock galaxies reside in less massive halos than mock AGN of similar mass. Moreover, matched mock normal galaxies are less biased than mock AGN with similar specific BHAR and SFR, at least for Q > 1.Peer reviewe

THE CHANDRA COSMOS LEGACY SURVEY : CLUSTERING OF X-RAY-SELECTED AGNs AT 2.9 <= z <= 5.5 USING PHOTOMETRIC REDSHIFT PROBABILITY DISTRIBUTION FUNCTIONS

We present the measurement of the projected and redshift-space two-point correlation function (2pcf) of the new catalog of Chandra COSMOS-Legacy active galactic nucleus (AGN) at 2.9 similar to 10(46) erg s(-1)) using the generalized clustering estimator based on phot-z probability distribution functions in addition to any available spec-z. We model the projected 2pcf, estimated using pi(max) = 200 h(-1) Mpc with the two-halo term and we derive a bias at z similar to 3.4 equal to b. =. 6.6(+0.60) -(0.55), which corresponds to a typical mass of the hosting halos of log M-h. =. 12.83(+0.12) -(0.11) h(-1)M circle dot. A similar bias is derived using the redshift-space 2pcf, modeled including the typical phot-z error sigma(z). =. 0.052 of our sample at z >= 2.9. Once we integrate the projected 2pcf up to pi(max). =. 200 h(-1) Mpc, the bias of XMM and Chandra COSMOS at z =. 2.8 used in Allevato et al. is consistent with our results at higher redshifts. The results suggest only a slight increase of the bias factor of COSMOS AGNs at z greater than or similar to 3 with the typical hosting halo mass of moderate-luminosity AGNs almost constant with redshift and equal to log M-h = 12.92(+0.-13) (0.18) at z - 2.8 and log M-h - 12.83(+0.11) (-0.12) at z similar to 3.4, respectively. The observed redshift evolution of the bias of COSMOS AGNs implies that moderate-luminosity AGNs. still inhabit group-sized halos at z greater than or similar to 3, but slightly less massive than observed in different independent studies using X-ray AGNs. at z less than or similar to 2.Peer reviewe

THE CHANDRA COSMOS-LEGACY SURVEY : THE z > 3 SAMPLE

We present the largest high-redshift (3 0 at z > 3. We compute the number counts in the observed 0.5-2 keV band, finding a decline in the number of sources at z > 3 and constraining phenomenological models of the X-ray background. We compute the AGN space density at z. > 3 in two different luminosity bins. At higher luminosities (logL(2-10 keV) > 44.1 erg s(-1)), the space density declines exponentially, dropping by a factor of similar to 20 from z similar to 3 to z similar to 6. The observed decline is similar to 80% steeper at lower luminosities (43.55 erg s(-1) 44.1 erg s(-1), unobscured and obscured objects may have different evolution with redshift, with the obscured component being three times higher at z similar to 5. Finally, we compare our space density with predictions of quasar activation merger models, whose calibration is based on optically luminous AGNs. These models significantly overpredict the number of expected AGNs at logL (2-10 keV) > 44.1 erg s(-1) with respect to our data.Peer reviewe

The galaxy’s gas content regulated by the dark matter halo mass results in a superlinear M BH–M ⋆ Relation

Supermassive black holes (SMBHs) are tightly correlated with their hosts, but the origin of such connection remains elusive. To explore the cosmic buildup of this scaling relation, we present an empirically motivated model that tracks galaxy and SMBH growth down to z = 0. Starting from a random mass seed distribution at z = 10, we assume that each galaxy evolves on the star-forming "main sequence" (MS) and each BH follows the recently derived stellar mass (M sstarf) dependent ratio between BH accretion rate and star formation rate, going as $\mathrm{BHAR}/\mathrm{SFR}\propto {M}_{\star }^{0.73[+0.22,-0.29]}$. Our simple recipe naturally describes the BH–galaxy buildup in two stages. At first, the SMBH lags behind the host that evolves along the MS. Later, as the galaxy grows in M sstarf, our M sstarf-dependent BHAR/SFR induces a superlinear BH growth, as ${M}_{\mathrm{BH}}\propto {M}_{\star }^{1.7}$. According to this formalism, smaller BH seeds increase their relative mass faster and earlier than bigger BH seeds, at fixed M sstarf, thus setting along a gradually tighter M BH–M sstarf locus toward higher M sstarf. Assuming reasonable values of the radiative efficiency epsilon ~ 0.1, our empirical trend agrees with both high-redshift model predictions and intrinsic M BH–M sstarf relations of local BHs. We speculate that the observed nonlinear BH–galaxy buildup is reflected in a twofold behavior with dark matter halo mass (M DM), displaying a clear turnover at M DM ~ 2 × 1012 M ⊙. While supernovae-driven feedback suppresses BH growth in smaller halos ($\mathrm{BHAR}/\mathrm{SFR}\propto {M}_{\mathrm{DM}}^{1.6}$), above the M DM threshold cold gas inflows possibly fuel both BH accretion and star formation in a similar fashion ($\mathrm{BHAR}/\mathrm{SFR}\propto {M}_{\mathrm{DM}}^{0.3}$)

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

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 rele v ant 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 ( N H /cm −2 ) ≥24 sources at least at z &#x2; 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 ef fecti ve, although galaxy-scale gas obscuration may be sufficient to reproduce the obscured fraction with 22 &lt; log ( N H /cm −2 ) &lt; 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

THE CHANDRA COSMOS-LEGACY SURVEY : SOURCE X-RAY SPECTRAL PROPERTIES

We present the X-ray spectral analysis of the 1855 extragalactic sources in the Chandra COSMOS-Legacy survey catalog having more than 30 net counts in the 0.5-7 keV band. A total of 38% of the sources are optically classified type 1 active galactic nuclei (AGNs), 60% are type 2 AGNs, and 2% are passive, low-redshift galaxies. We study the distribution of AGN photon index Gamma and of the intrinsic absorption N-H,N-z based on the sources' optical classification: type 1 AGNs have a slightly steeper mean photon index Gamma than type 2 AGNs, which, on the other hand, have average N-H,N-z similar to 3 times higher than type 1 AGNs. We find that similar to 15% of type 1 AGNs have N-H,N-z > 10(22) cm(-2), i.e., are obscured according to the X-ray spectral fitting; the vast majority of these sources have L2-10 (keV) > 10(44) erg s(-1). The existence of these objects suggests that optical and X-ray obscuration can be caused by different phenomena, the X-ray obscuration being, for example, caused by dust-free material surrounding the inner part of the nuclei. Approximately 18% of type 2 AGNs have N-H,N-z <10(22) cm(-2), and most of these sources have low X-ray luminosities (L2-10 (keV) <10(43) erg s(-1)). We expect a part of these sources to be low-accretion, unobscured AGNs lacking broad emission lines. Finally, we also find a direct proportional trend between N-H,N-z and host-galaxy mass and star formation rate, although part of this trend is due to a redshift selection effect.Peer reviewe

The Hunt for Red Quasars : Luminous Obscured Black Hole Growth Unveiled in the Stripe 82 X-Ray Survey

We present results of a ground-based near-infrared campaign with Palomar TripleSpec, Keck NIRSPEC, and Gemini GNIRS to target two samples of reddened active galactic nucleus (AGN) candidates from the 31 deg(2) Stripe 82 X-ray survey. One sample, which is similar to 89% complete to K 4, Vega). The fainter sample (K > 17, Vega) represents a pilot program to follow-up four sources from a parent sample of 34 that are not detected in the single-epoch SDSS catalog and have WISE quasar colors. All 12 sources are broad-line AGNs (at least one permitted emission line has an FWHM exceeding 1300 km s(-1)) and span a redshift range 0.59 0.5), and a greater percentage have high X-ray luminosities (L-X,L- full > 10(44) erg s(-1)). Such outflows and high luminosities may be consistent with the paradigm that reddened broad-line AGNs represent a transitory phase in AGN evolution as described by the major merger model for black hole growth. Results from our pilot program demonstrate proof of concept that our selection technique is successful in discovering reddened quasars at z > 1 missed by optical surveys.Peer reviewe

Observational constraints on the physics behind the evolution of AGN since z ~ 1

We explore the evolution with redshift of the rest-frame colours and space densities of AGN hosts (relative to normal galaxies) to shed light on the dominant mechanism that triggers accretion onto supermassive black holes as a function of cosmic time. Data from serendipitous wide-area XMM surveys of the SDSS footprint (XMM/SDSS, Needles in the Haystack survey) are combined with Chandra deep observations in the AEGIS, GOODS-North and GOODS-South to compile uniformly selected samples of moderate luminosity X-ray AGN [L_X(2-10keV) = 1e41-1e44erg/s] at redshifts 0.1, 0.3 and 0.8. It is found that the fraction of AGN hosted by red versus blue galaxies does not change with redshift. Also, the X-ray luminosity density associated with either red or blue AGN hosts remains nearly constant since z=0.8. X-ray AGN represent a roughly fixed fraction of the space density of galaxies of given optical luminosity at all redshifts probed by our samples. In contrast the fraction of X-ray AGN among galaxies of a given stellar mass decreases with decreasing redshift. These findings suggest that the same process or combination of processes for fueling supermassive black holes are in operation in the last 5 Gyrs of cosmic time. The data are consistent with a picture in which the drop of the accretion power during that period (1dex since z=0.8) is related to the decline of the space density of available AGN hosts, as a result of the evolution of the specific star-formation rate of the overall galaxy population. Scenarios which attribute the evolution of moderate luminosity AGN since z \approx 1 to changes in the suppermassive black hole accretion mode are not favored by our results.Comment: MNRAS accepted, 15 pages, 10 figure

THE CHANDRA COSMOS LEGACY SURVEY : OPTICAL/IR IDENTIFICATIONS

We present the catalog of optical and infrared counterparts of the Chandra. COSMOS-Legacy. Survey, a 4.6 Ms Chandra. program on the 2.2 deg(2) of the COSMOS field, combination of 56 new overlapping observations obtained in Cycle 14 with the previous C-COSMOS survey. In this Paper we report the i, K, and 3.6 mu m identifications of the 2273 X-ray point sources detected in the new Cycle 14 observations. We use the likelihood ratio technique to derive the association of optical/infrared (IR) counterparts for 97% of the X-ray sources. We also update the information for the 1743 sources detected in C-COSMOS, using new K and 3.6 mu 3m information not available when the C-COSMOS analysis was performed. The final catalog contains 4016 X-ray sources, 97% of which have an optical/IR counterpart and a photometric redshift, while; similar or equal to 54% of the sources have a spectroscopic redshift. The full catalog, including spectroscopic and photometric redshifts and optical and X-ray properties described here in detail, is available online. We study several X-ray to optical (X/O) properties: with our large statistics we put better constraints on the X/O flux ratio locus, finding a shift toward faint optical magnitudes in both soft and hard X-ray band. We confirm the existence of a correlation between X/O and the the 2-10 keV luminosity for Type 2 sources. We extend to low luminosities the analysis of the correlation between the fraction of obscured AGNs and the hard band luminosity, finding a different behavior between the optically and X-ray classified obscured fraction.Peer reviewe