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Register a new userBlack hole accretion versus star formation rate: theory confronts observations
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We use a suite of hydrodynamical simulations of galaxy mergers to compare star formation rate (SFR) and black hole accretion rate (BHAR) for galaxies before the interaction (stochastic phase), during the `merger proper, lasting ~0.2-0.3 Gyr, and in the `remnant phase. We calculate the bi-variate distribution of SFR and BHAR and define the regions in the SFR-BHAR plane that the three phases occupy. No strong correlation between BHAR and galaxy-wide SFR is found. A possible exception are galaxies with the highest SFR and the highest BHAR. We also bin the data in the same way used in several observational studies, by either measuring the mean SFR for AGN in different luminosity bins, or the mean BHAR for galaxies in bins of SFR. We find that the apparent contradiction or SFR versus BHAR for observed samples of AGN and star forming galaxies is actually caused by binning effects. The two types of samples use different projections of the full bi-variate distribution, and the full information would lead to unambiguous interpretation. We also find that a galaxy can be classified as AGN-dominated up to 1.5 Gyr after the merger-driven starburst took place. Our study is consistent with the suggestion that most low-luminosity AGN hosts do not show morphological disturbances.
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We present a new suite of hydrodynamical simulations and use it to study, in detail, black hole and galaxy properties. The high time, spatial and mass resolution, and realistic orbits and mass ratios, down to 1:6 and 1:10, enable us to meaningfully compare star formation rate (SFR) and BH accretion rate (BHAR) timescales, temporal behaviour and relative magnitude. We find that (i) BHAR and galaxy-wide SFR are typically temporally uncorrelated, and have different variability timescales, except during the merger proper, lasting ~0.2-0.3 Gyr. BHAR and nuclear (<100 pc) SFR are better correlated, and their variability are similar. Averaging over time, the merger phase leads typically to an increase by a factor of a few in the BHAR/SFR ratio. (ii) BHAR and nuclear SFR are intrinsically proportional, but the correlation lessens if the long-term SFR is measured. (iii) Galaxies in the remnant phase are the ones most likely to be selected as systems dominated by an active galactic nucleus (AGN), because of the long time spent in this phase. (iv) The timescale over which a given diagnostic probes the SFR has a profound impact on the recovered correlations with BHAR, and on the interpretation of observational data.
We present a measurement of the average supermassive black hole accretion rate (BHAR) as a function of star formation rate (SFR) for galaxies in the redshift range 0.25<z<0.8. We study a sample of 1,767 far-IR selected star-forming galaxies in the 9 deg^2 Bootes multiwavelength survey field. The SFR is estimated using 250 micron observations from the Herschel Space Observatory, for which the contribution from the AGN is minimal. In this sample, 121 AGNs are directly identified using X-ray or mid-IR selection criteria. We combined these detected AGNs and an X-ray stacking analysis for undetected sources to study the average BHAR for all of the star-forming galaxies in our sample. We find an almost linear relation between the average BHAR (in M_sun/year) and the SFR (in M_sun/year) for galaxies across a wide SFR range 0.85<log SFR<2.56 : log BHAR=(-3.72pm0.52)+(1.05pm0.33) log SFR. This global correlation between SFR and average BHAR is consistent with a simple picture in which SFR and AGN activity are tightly linked over galaxy evolution timescales.
We present a new backward evolution model for galaxies and AGNs in the infrared (IR). What is new in this model is the separate study of the evolutionary properties of the different IR populations (i.e. spiral galaxies, starburst galaxies, low-luminosity AGNs, unobscured type 1 AGNs and obscured type 2 AGNs) defined through a detailed analysis of the spectral energy distributions (SEDs) of large samples of IR selected sources. The evolutionary parameters have been constrained by means of all the available observables from surveys in the mid- and far-IR (source counts, redshift and luminosity distributions, luminosity functions). By decomposing the SEDs representative of the three AGN classes into three distinct components (a stellar component emitting most of its power in the optical/near-IR, an AGN component due to hot dust heated by the central black hole peaking in the mid-IR, and a starburst component dominating the far-IR spectrum) we have disentangled the AGN contribution to the monochromatic and total IR luminosity emitted by the different populations considered in our model from that due to star-formation activity. We have then obtained an estimate of the total IR luminosity density (and star-formation density - SFD - produced by IR galaxies) and the first ever estimate of the black hole mass accretion density (BHAR) from the IR. The derived evolution of the BHAR is in agreement with estimates from X-rays, though the BHAR values we derive from IR are slightly higher than the X-ray ones. Finally, we have simulated source counts, redshift distributions and SFD and BHAR that we expect to obtain with the future cosmological Surveys in the mid-/far-IR that will be performed with JWST-MIRI and SPICA-SAFARI.
We present a study of the star formation and central black hole accretion activity of the galaxies hosted in the two nearby (z$sim$0.2) rich galaxy clusters Abell 983 and 1731. Aims: We are able to quantify both the obscured and unobscured star formation rates, as well as the presence of active galactic nuclei (AGN) as a function of the environment in which the galaxy is located. Methods: We targeted the clusters with unprecedented deep infrared Spitzer observations (0.2 mJy @ 24 micron), near-IR Palomar imaging and optical WIYN spectroscopy. The extent of our observations ($sim$ 3 virial radii) covers the vast range of possible environments, from the very dense cluster centre to the very rarefied cluster outskirts and accretion regions. Results: The star forming members of the two clusters present star formation rates comparable with those measured in coeval field galaxies. The analysis of the spatial arrangement of the spectroscopically confirmed members reveals an elongated distribution for A1731 with respect to the more uniform distribution of A983. The emerging picture is compatible with A983 being a fully evolved cluster, in contrast with the still actively accreting A1731. Conclusions: The analysis of the specific star formation rate reveals evidence of on-going galaxy pre-processing along A1731s filament-like structure. Furthermore, the decrease in the number of star forming galaxies and AGN towards the cluster cores suggests that the cluster environment is accelerating the ageing process of galaxies and blocking further accretion of the cold gas that fuels both star formation and black hole accretion activity.
Black hole accretion is widely thought to influence star formation in galaxies, but the empirical evidence for a physical correlation between star formation rate (SFR) and the properties of active galactic nuclei (AGNs) remains highly controversial. We take advantage of a recently developed SFR estimator based on the [O II] $lambda3727$ and [O III] $lambda5007$ emission lines to investigate the SFRs of the host galaxies of more than 5,800 type 1 and 7,600 type 2 AGNs with $z < 0.35$. After matching in luminosity and redshift, we find that type 1 and type 2 AGNs have a similar distribution of internal reddening, which is significant and corresponds to $sim 10^9,M_odot$ of cold molecular gas. In spite of their comparable gas content, type 2 AGNs, independent of stellar mass, Eddington ratio, redshift or molecular gas mass, exhibit intrinsically stronger star formation activity than type 1 AGNs, in apparent disagreement with the conventional AGN unified model. We observe a tight, linear relation between AGN luminosity (accretion rate) and SFR, one that becomes more significant toward smaller physical scales, suggesting that the link between the AGN and star formation occurs in the central kpc-scale region. This, along with a correlation between SFR and Eddington ratio in the regime of super-Eddington accretion, can be interpreted as evidence that star formation is impacted by positive feedback from the AGN.
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