59 research outputs found
Investigating Quasar Outflows at High Redshift
In this thesis, I present my work on the characterization of quasar outflows which I carried out using the statistics and the ionization properties of Narrow Absorption Lines (NALs). The study is based on a new sample of intermediate resolution spectra of 100 high-redshift quasars (z_em = 3.5 12 4.5), obtained with X-shooter at the European Southern Observatory Very Large Telescope, in the context of the XQ-100 Legacy Survey (Lopez et al., 2016). The combination of high signal-to-noise ratio (S/N), wide wavelength coverage and moderate spectral resolution of this survey have allowed me to look for empirical signatures to distinguish between two classes of absorbers: intrinsic (produced in gas that is physically associated with the quasar) and intervening, without taking into account any a priori definition or velocity cut-off. Previous studies have shown that NALs tend to cluster near the quasar emission redshift, at z_abs = z_em. I detect a significant excess of absorbers over what is expected from randomly distributed intervening structures. This excess does not show a dependence on the quasar bolometric luminosity and it is not due to the redshift evolution of NALs. Most interestingly, it extends far beyond the standard 5000 km/s cut-off traditionally defined for associated absorption lines. I take advantage of the large spectral coverage of the XQ-100 spectra to study the relative numbers of NALs in different transitions, indicative of the ionization structure of the absorbers and their locations relative to the continuum source. Among the ions examined in this work, NV is the ion that best traces the effects of the quasar ionization field, offering an excellent statistical tool to identify intrinsic systems and derive the fraction of quasar driving outflows. I also test the robustness of the use of NV as additional criterium to select intrinsic NALs, performing a stack analysis of the Lya forest of the XQ-100 sample, to search for NV signal at large velocity offsets. Lastly, I compare the properties of the material along the quasar line of sight, derived from my sample, with results based on close quasar pairs investigating the transverse direction. I find a deficiency of cool gas (traced by CII) along the line of sight connected to the quasar host galaxy, in contrast with what is observed in the transverse direction in agreement with the predictions of the AGN unification models
Winds as the origin of radio emission in radio-quiet extremely red quasars
Most active galactic nuclei (AGNs) are radio-quiet, and the origin of their
radio emission is not well-understood. One hypothesis is that this radio
emission is a by-product of quasar-driven winds. In this paper, we present the
radio properties of 108 extremely red quasars (ERQs) at . ERQs are among
the most luminous quasars ( erg/s) in the Universe,
with signatures of extreme ( km/s) outflows in their
[OIII]5007 \AA\ emission, making them the best subjects to seek the
connection between radio and outflow activity. All ERQs but one are unresolved
in the radio on kpc scales, and the median radio luminosity of ERQs
is erg/s, in the radio-quiet regime, but
one to two orders of magnitude higher than that of other quasar samples. The
radio spectra are steep, with a mean spectral index . In addition, ERQs neatly follow the extrapolation of the low-redshift
correlation between radio luminosity and the velocity dispersion of
[OIII]-emitting ionized gas. Uncollimated winds, with a power of one per cent
of the bolometric luminosity, can account for all these observations. Such
winds would interact with and shock the gas around the quasar and in the host
galaxy, resulting in acceleration of relativistic particles and the consequent
synchrotron emission observed in the radio. Our observations support the
picture in which ERQs are signposts of extremely powerful episodes of quasar
feedback, and quasar-driven winds as a contributor of the radio emission in the
intermediate regime of radio luminosity erg/s.Comment: accepted by MNRA
Probing the Inner Circumgalactic Medium and Quasar Illumination around the Reddest `Extremely Red Quasar' (ERQ)
Dusty quasars might be in a young stage of galaxy evolution with prominent
quasar feedback. A recently discovered population of luminous, extremely red
quasars at ~2--4 has extreme spectral properties related to
exceptionally powerful quasar-driven outflows. We present Keck/KCWI
observations of the reddest known ERQ, at \,2.3184, with extremely fast
[\ion{O}{III}]~5007 outflow at 6000~km~s. The Ly
halo spans 100~kpc. The halo is kinematically quiet, with velocity
dispersion 300~km~s and no broadening above the dark matter
circular velocity down to the spatial resolution 6~kpc from the quasar.
We detect spatially-resolved \ion{He}{II}~1640 and
\ion{C}{IV}~1549 emissions with kinematics similar to the Ly
halo and a narrow component in the [\ion{O}{III}]~5007. Quasar
reddening acts as a coronagraph allowing views of the innermost halo. A narrow
Ly spike in the quasar spectrum is inner halo emission, confirming the
broad \ion{C}{IV}~1549 in the unresolved quasar is blueshifted by
~km~s relative to the halo frame. We propose the inner halo is
dominated by moderate-speed outflow driven in the past and the outer halo
dominated by inflow. The high central concentration of the halo and the
symmetric morphology of the inner region are consistent with the ERQ being in
earlier evolutionary stage than blue quasars. The
\ion{He}{II}~1640/Ly ratio of the inner halo and the asymmetry
level of the overall halo are dissimilar to Type~II quasars, suggesting unique
physical conditions for this ERQ that are beyond orientation differences from
other quasar populations. We find no evidence of mechanical quasar feedback in
the Ly-emitting halo.Comment: 20 pages, 18 figures, published in MNRA
Possible evidence of the radio AGN quenching of neighbouring galaxies at z ∼ 1
Using 57 radio active galactic nuclei (RAGNs) at 0.55 ≤ z ≤ 1.3 drawn from five fields of the Observations of Redshift Evolution in Large-Scale Environments (ORELSE) survey, we study the effect of injection of energy from outbursts of RAGN on their spectroscopically confirmed neighbouring galaxies (SNGs). We observe an elevated fraction of quenched neighbours (f_q) within 500 kpc projected radius of RAGN in the most dense local environments compared to those of non-RAGN control samples matched to the RAGN population in colour, stellar mass, and local environment at 2σ significance. Further analyses show that there are offsets at similar significance between f_qs of RAGN-SNGs and the appropriate control samples for galaxies specifically in cluster environments and those hosted by most massive cluster galaxies, which tentatively suggests that some negative feedback from the RAGN is occurring in these dense environments. In addition, we find that the median radio power of RAGN increases with increasing local overdensity, an effect which may lend itself to the quenching of neighbouring galaxies. Furthermore, we find that, in the highest local overdensities, the f_q of the sub-sample of lower stellar mass RAGN-SNGs is larger than that of the higher stellar mass RAGN-SNGs sub-sample, which indicates a more pronounced effect from RAGN on lower stellar mass galaxies. We propose a scenario in which RAGN residing within clusters might heat the intracluster medium (ICM) affecting both in situ star formation and any inflowing gas that remains in their neighbouring galaxies
Host galaxies of high-redshift extremely red and obscured quasars
We present Hubble Space Telescope 1.4-1.6 micron images of the hosts of ten
extremely red quasars (ERQs) and six type 2 quasar candidates at z=2-3. ERQs,
whose bolometric luminosities range between 10^47 and 10^48 erg/sec, show
spectroscopic signs of powerful ionized winds, whereas type 2 quasar candidates
are less luminous and show only mild outflows. After performing careful
subtraction of the quasar light, we clearly detect almost all host galaxies.
The median rest-frame B-band luminosity of the ERQ hosts in our sample is
10^11.2 L_Sun, or 4 L* at this redshift. Two of the ten hosts of ERQs are in
ongoing mergers. The hosts of the type 2 quasar candidates are 0.6 dex less
luminous, with 2/6 in likely ongoing mergers. Intriguingly, despite some signs
of interaction and presence of low-mass companions, our objects do not show
nearly as much major merger activity as do high-redshift radio-loud galaxies
and quasars. In the absence of an overt connection to major ongoing gas-rich
merger activity, our observations are consistent with a model in which the
near-Eddington accretion and strong feedback of ERQs are associated with
relatively late stages of mergers resulting in early-type remnants. These
results are in some tension with theoretical expectations of galaxy formation
models, in which rapid black hole growth occurs within a short time of a major
merger. Type 2 quasar candidates are less luminous, so they may instead be
powered by internal galactic processes.Comment: Accepted to MNRAS; 23 pages, including 9 figures and 2 table
Powerful winds in high-redshift obscured and red quasars
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 [O III] 5007 Å and H α 6563 Å emission lines redshifted into the near-infrared to gauge the extents, kinetic energies and momentum fluxes of the ionized outflows in the quasars host galaxies. For the ERQs, the galactic-scale outflows are likely driven by radiation pressure in a high column density environment or due to an adiabatic shock. The outflows in the ERQs carry a significant amount of energy ranging from 0.05 to 5  per cent of the quasar’s bolometric luminosity, powerful enough to have a significant impact on the quasar host galaxies. The outflows are resolved on kpc scales, the observed outflow sizes are generally smaller than other ionized outflows observed at high redshift. The high ratio between the momentum flux of the ionized outflow and the photon momentum flux from the quasar accretion disc and high nuclear obscuration makes these ERQs great candidates for transitional objects where the outflows are likely responsible for clearing material in the inner regions of each galaxy, unveiling the quasar accretion disc at optical wavelengths
Ionized Gas Extended Over 40 kpc in an Odd Radio Circle Host Galaxy
A new class of extragalactic astronomical sources discovered in 2021, named
Odd Radio Circles (ORCs, Norris et al. 2021), are large rings of faint, diffuse
radio continuum emission spanning ~1 arcminute on the sky. Galaxies at the
centers of several ORCs have photometric redshifts of z~0.3-0.6, implying
physical scales of several 100 kiloparsecs in diameter for the radio emission,
the origin of which is unknown. Here we report spectroscopic data on an ORC
including strong [OII] emission tracing ionized gas in the central galaxy of
ORC4 at z=0.4512. The physical extent of the [OII] emission is ~40 kpc in
diameter, larger than expected for a typical early-type galaxy (Pandya et al,
2017) but an order of magnitude smaller than the large-scale radio continuum
emission. We detect a ~200 km/s velocity gradient across the [OII] nebula, as
well as a high velocity dispersion of ~180 km/s. The [OII] equivalent width
(EW, ~50 Ang) is extremely high for a quiescent galaxy. The morphology,
kinematics, and strength of the [OII] emission are consistent with the infall
of shock ionized gas near the galaxy, following a larger-scale, outward moving
shock driven by a galactic wind. Both the extended optical and radio emission,
while observed on very different scales, may therefore result from the same
dramatic event.Comment: 7 figures, accepted to Natur
Kinematics, Structure, and Mass Outflow Rates of Extreme Starburst Galactic Outflows
We present results on the properties of extreme gas outflows in massive (10), compact, starburst () galaxies at z = with very high star
formation surface densities ($2000 \,\rm M_{\odot} \
yr^{-1} \ kpc^{-2}820 - 2860
\kmps. High-resolution spectroscopy allows us to measure precise column
densities and covering fractions as a function of outflow velocity and
characterize the kinematics and structure of the cool gas outflow phase (T
\sim^4 K). We find substantial variation in the absorption profiles,
which likely reflects the complex morphology of inhomogeneously-distributed,
clumpy gas and the intricacy of the turbulent mixing layers between the cold
and hot outflow phases. There is not a straightforward correlation between the
bursts in the galaxies' star formation histories and their wind absorption line
profiles, as might naively be expected for starburst-driven winds. The lack of
strong \mgii \ absorption at the systemic velocity is likely an orientation
effect, where the observations are down the axis of a blowout. We infer high
mass outflow rates of \rm \sim-\rm M_{\odot} \, yr^{-1}\eta\sim\eta\sim$20 for two galaxies. While
these values have high uncertainties, they suggest that starburst galaxies are
capable of ejecting very large amounts of cool gas that will substantially
impact their future evolution.Comment: Accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journa
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