380 research outputs found
The subarcsecond mid-infrared view of local active galactic nuclei: III. Polar dust emission
Recent mid-infrared (MIR) interferometric observations showed in few active
galactic nuclei (AGN) that the bulk of the infrared emission originates from
the polar region above the putative torus, where only little dust should be
present. Here, we investigate whether such strong polar dust emission is common
in AGN. Out of 149 Seyferts in the MIR atlas of local AGN (Asmus et al.), 21
show extended MIR emission on single dish images. In 18 objects, the extended
MIR emission aligns with the system axis position angle, established by [OIII],
radio, polarisation and maser based position angle measurements. The relative
amount of resolved MIR emission is at least 40 per cent and scales with the
[OIV] fluxes implying a strong connection between the extended continuum and
[OIV] emitters. These results together with the radio-quiet nature of the
Seyferts support the scenario that the bulk of MIR emission is emitted by dust
in the polar region and not by the torus, which would demand a new paradigm for
the infrared emission structure in AGN. The current low detection rate of polar
dust in the AGN of the MIR atlas is explained by the lack of sufficient high
quality MIR data and the requirement for the orientation, NLR strength and
distance of the AGN. The James-Webb Space Telescope will enable much deeper
nuclear MIR studies with comparable angular resolution, allowing us to resolve
the polar emission and surroundings in most of the nearby AGN.Comment: Accepted for publication in ApJ on Mar 08 (submitted Dec 22
The dusty heart of nearby active galaxies. I. High-spatial resolution mid-IR spectro-photometry of Seyfert galaxies
We present 8-13 micron imaging and spectroscopy of 9 type 1 and 10 type 2 AGN
obtained with the VLT/VISIR instrument at spatial resolution <100 pc. The
emission from the host galaxy sources is resolved out in most cases. The
silicate absorption features are moderately deep and emission features are
shallow. We compare the mid-IR luminosities to AGN luminosity tracers and found
that the mid-IR radiation is emitted quite isotropically. In two cases, IC5063
and MCG-3-34-64, we find evidence for extended dust emission in the narrow-line
region. We confirm the correlation between observed silicate feature strength
and Hydrogen column density recently found in Spitzer data. In a further step,
our 3D clumpy torus model has been used to interpret the data. We show that the
strength of the silicate feature and the mid-IR spectral index can be used to
get reasonable constraints on the dust distribution in the torus. The mid-IR
spectral index, alpha, is almost exclusively determined by the radial dust
distribution power-law index, a, and the silicate feature depth is mostly
depending on the average number of clouds, N0, along an equatorial
line-of-sight and the torus inclination. A comparison of model predictions to
our type 1 and type 2 AGN reveals typical average parameters a=-1.0+/-0.5 and
N0=5-8, which means that the radial dust distribution is rather shallow. As a
proof-of-concept of this method, we compared the model parameters derived from
alpha and the silicate feature to more detailed studies of IR SEDs and
interferometry and found that the constraints on a and N0 are consistent.
Finally, we might have found evidence that the radial structure of the torus
changes from low to high AGN luminosities towards steeper dust distributions,
and we discuss implications for the IR size-luminosity relation. (abridged)Comment: 22 pages, 13 figues, 6 tables; Accepted for publication in A&A; Note
that this is the second submitted paper from the series, but we changed paper
order. This one will be referred to as paper I, the previously submitted
arXiv:0909.4539 will become paper I
Obscuration in extremely luminous quasars
The spectral energy distributions and infrared (IR) spectra of a sample of
obscured AGNs selected in the mid-IR are modeled with recent clumpy torus
models to investigate the nature of the sources, the properties of the
obscuring matter, and dependencies on luminosity. The sample contains 21
obscured AGNs at z=1.3-3 discovered in the largest Spitzer surveys (SWIRE,
NDWFS, & FLS) by means of their extremely red IR to optical colors. All sources
show the 9.7micron silicate feature in absorption and have extreme mid-IR
luminosities (L(6micron)~10^46 erg/s). The IR SEDs and spectra of 12 sources
are well reproduced with a simple torus model, while the remaining 9 sources
require foreground extinction from a cold dust component to reproduce both the
depth of the silicate feature and the near-IR emission from hot dust. The
best-fit torus models show a broad range of inclinations, with no preference
for the edge-on torus expected in obscured AGNs. Based on the unobscured QSO
mid-IR luminosity function, and on a color-selected sample of obscured and
unobscured IR sources, we estimate the surface densities of obscured and
unobscured QSOs at L(6micron)>10^12 Lsun, and z=1.3-3.0 to be about 17-22
deg^-2, and 11.7 deg^-2, respectively. Overall we find that ~35-41% of luminous
QSOs are unobscured, 37-40% are obscured by the torus, and 23-25% are obscured
by a cold absorber detached from the torus. These fractions constrain the torus
half opening angle to be ~67 deg. This value is significantly larger than found
for FIR selected samples of AGN at lower luminosity (~46 deg), supporting the
receding torus scenario. A far-IR component is observed in 8 objects. The
estimated far-IR luminosities associated with this component all exceed
3.3x10^12 Lsun, implying SFRs of 600-3000 Msun/yr. (Abridged)Comment: ApJ accepte
Grid site testing for ATLAS with Hammer Cloud
With the exponential growth of LHC (Large Hadron Collider) data in 2012, distributed computing has become the established way to analyze collider data. The ATLAS grid infrastructure includes more than 130 sites worldwide, ranging from large national computing centers to smaller university clusters. HammerCloud was previously introduced with the goals of enabling virtual organisations (VO) and site-administrators to run validation tests of the site and software infrastructure in an automated or on-demand manner. The HammerCloud infrastructure has been constantly improved to support the addition of new test workflows. These new workflows comprise e.g. tests of the ATLAS nightly build system, ATLAS Monte Carlo production system, XRootD federation (FAX) and new site stress test workflows. We report on the development, optimization and results of the various components in the HammerCloud framework
The complexity of parsec-scaled dusty tori in AGN
Warm gas and dust surround the innermost regions of active galactic nuclei
(AGN). They provide the material for accretion onto the super-massive black
hole and they are held responsible for the orientation-dependent obscuration of
the central engine. The AGN-heated dust distributions turn out to be very
compact with sizes on scales of about a parsec in the mid-infrared. Only
infrared interferometry currently provides the necessary angular resolution to
directly study the physical properties of this dust. Size estimates for the
dust distributions derived from interferometric observations can be used to
construct a size--luminosity relation for the dust distributions. The large
scatter about this relation suggests significant differences between the dust
tori in the individual galaxies, even for nuclei of the same class of objects
and with similar luminosities. This questions the simple picture of the same
dusty doughnut in all AGN. The Circinus galaxy is the closest Seyfert 2 galaxy.
Because its mid-infrared emission is well resolved interferometrically, it is a
prime target for detailed studies of its nuclear dust distribution. An
extensive new interferometric data set was obtained for this galaxy. It shows
that the dust emission comes from a very dense, disk-like structure which is
surrounded by a geometrically thick, similarly warm dust distribution as well
as significant amounts of warm dust within the ionisation cone.Comment: 8 pages, 3 figures, to appear in the proceedings of the conference
"The central kiloparsec in Galactic Nuclei: Astronomy at High Angular
Resolution 2011", open access Journal of Physics: Conference Series (JPCS),
published by IOP Publishin
Boojums and the Shapes of Domains in Monolayer Films
Domains in Langmuir monolayers support a texture that is the two-dimensional
version of the feature known as a boojum. Such a texture has a quantifiable
effect on the shape of the domain with which it is associated. The most
noticeable consequence is a cusp-like feature on the domain boundary. We report
the results of an experimental and theoretical investigation of the shape of a
domain in a Langmuir monolayer. A further aspect of the investigation is the
study of the shape of a ``bubble'' of gas-like phase in such a monolayer. This
structure supports a texture having the form of an inverse boojum. The
distortion of a bubble resulting from this texture is also studied. The
correspondence between theory and experiment, while not perfect, indicates that
a qualitative understanding of the relationship between textures and domain
shapes has been achieved.Comment: replaced with published version, 10 pages, 13 figures include
VLTI/AMBER observations of the Seyfert nucleus of NGC 3783
Context. The putative tori surrounding the accretion disks of active galactic
nuclei (AGNs) play a fundamental role in the unification scheme of AGNs.
Infrared long-baseline interferometry allows us to study the inner dust
distribution in AGNs with unprecedented spatial resolution over a wide infrared
wavelength range.
Aims. Near- and mid-infrared interferometry is used to investigate the
milli-arcsecond-scale dust distribution in the type 1.5 Seyfert nucleus of NGC
3783.
Methods. We observed NGC 3783 with the VLTI/AMBER instrument in the K-band
and compared our observations with models.
Results. From the K-band observations, we derive a ring-fit torus radius of
0.74 +/- 0.23 mas or 0.16 +/- 0.05 pc. We compare this size with infrared
interferometric observations of other AGNs and UV/optical-infrared
reverberation measurements. For the interpretation of our observations, we
simultaneously model our near- and mid-infrared visibilities and the SED with a
temperature/density-gradient model including an additional inner hot 1400 K
ring component
X-ray Absorption and Optical Extinction in the Partially Obscured Seyfert Nucleus in Mrk 1393
We present a detailed study of the X-ray and optical spectra of the luminous
Seyfert galaxy Mrk 1393, which revealed variable partial obscuration of the
active nucleus. The X-ray spectra obtained by XMM-Newton and Swift show
moderate absorption with a column density around 3x10^21 cm^-2, consistent with
a dust-reddening interpretation of the steep Balmer decrement seen in recent
optical spectra. The X-ray flux in the 0.5 to 2 keV band during the XMM-Newton
observation in 2005 and Swift observation in 2006 was a factor 6 brighter than
that of the ROSAT All Sky Survey in 1991. In the past 4 years, the broad
H\alpha line brightened by a factor of 4 accompanied by a decrease in the
Balmer decrement. A comparison with literature spectra reveals variations in
the dust extinction on time scales of several years, suggesting that the
obscuring material is very close to the active nucleus. These observations
indicate that a dust-to-gas ratio as high as the Galactic value can be present
in moderately thick gas in the vicinity of the central engine within a few
parsecs. We suggest that the obscuring material may be debris disrupted from
the dusty torus.Comment: 25 pages, 5 figures, accepted to A
Parsec-scale dust distributions in Seyfert galaxies - Results of the MIDI AGN snapshot survey
The emission of warm dust dominates the mid-infrared spectra of active
galactic nuclei (AGN). Only interferometric observations provide the necessary
angular resolution to resolve the nuclear dust and to study its distribution
and properties. The investigation of dust in AGN cores is hence one of the main
science goals for the MID-infrared Interferometric instrument MIDI at the VLTI.
As the first step, the feasibility of AGN observations was verified and the
most promising sources for detailed studies were identified. This was carried
out in a "snapshot survey" with MIDI using Guaranteed Time Observations. In the
survey, observations were attempted for 13 of the brightest AGN in the
mid-infrared which are visible from Paranal. The results of the three
brightest, best studied sources have been published in separate papers. Here we
present the interferometric observations for the remaining 10, fainter AGN. For
8 of these, interferometric measurements could be carried out. Size estimates
or limits on the spatial extent of the AGN-heated dust were derived from the
interferometric data of 7 AGN. These indicate that the dust distributions are
compact, with sizes on the order of a few parsec. The derived sizes roughly
scale with the square root of the luminosity in the mid-infrared, s ~ sqrt(L),
with no clear distinction between type 1 and type 2 objects. This is in
agreement with a model of nearly optically thick dust structures heated to T ~
300 K. For three sources, the 10 micron feature due to silicates is tentatively
detected either in emission or in absorption. Based on the results for all AGN
studied with MIDI so far, we conclude that in the mid-infrared the differences
between individual galactic nuclei are greater than the generic differences
between type 1 and type 2 objects.Comment: 18 pages, 8 figures, updated to version published in A&A 502, 67-8
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