No Arabic abstract
One of the puzzles in understanding the spectra of active galactic nuclei (AGN) is the origin of the FeII emission. FeI emission, if present, will help reveal the physical conditions of the emitting gas. In an attempt to verify the presence of FeI lines, high S/N spectra of two FeII-strong quasars, IRAS 07598-6508 and PHL 1092, were obtained at the Multiple Mirror Telescope and the Steward 2.3 m Telescope. We have identified emission lines of FeI and TiII. The source of energy for FeII, FeI and TiII emission is probably not from ionization by the photon continuum, but heat. The high rate of energy generation and the presence of both high and low velocity gas indicate that the heat is generated not over a large area, but a narrow band in accretion disk, in which the rotational speed decreases rapidly.
We present near-infrared spectroscopy of the NLS1 galaxy PHL1092 (z=0.394), the strongest FeII emitter ever reported, combined with optical and UV data. We modeled the continuum and the broad emission lines using a power-law plus a black body function and Lorentzian functions, respectively. The strength of the FeII emission was estimated using the latest FeII templates in the literature. We re-estimate the ratio between the FeII complex centered at 4570Ang and the broad component of H-Beta, R_FeII, obtaining a value of 2.58, nearly half of that previously reported (R_FeII=6.2), but still placing PHL1092 among extreme FeII emitters. The FWHM found for low ionization lines are very similar (FWHM~1200km/s), but significantly narrower than those of the Hydrogen lines (FWHM(H-Beta)~1900km/s). Our results suggest that the FeII emission in PHL1092 follows the same trend as in normal FeII emitters, with FeII being formed in the outer portion of the BLR and co-spatial with CaII, and OI, while H-Beta is formed closer to the central source. The flux ratio between the UV lines suggest high densities, log(n_H)~13.0 cm^{-3}, and a low ionization parameter, log(U)~-3.5. The flux excess found in the FeII bump at 9200Ang after the subtraction of the NIR FeII template and its comparison with optical FeII emission suggests that the above physical conditions optimize the efficiency of the ly-Alpha fluorescence process, which was found to be the main excitation mechanism in the FeII production. We discuss the role of PHL1092 in the Eigenvector 1 context.
We present deep spectroscopic and imaging data of the host galaxies of Mrk 1014, IRAS 07598+6508, and Mrk 231. These objects form part of both the QSO and the ultraluminous infrared galaxy (ULIG) families, and may represent a transition stage in an evolutionary scenario. Our imaging shows that all three objects have highly perturbed hosts with tidal tails and destroyed disks, and appear to be in the final stages of major mergers. The host galaxies of the three objects have spectra typical of E+A galaxies, showing simultaneously features from an old and a young stellar component. We model spectra from different regions of the host galaxies using Bruzual & Charlot spectral synthesis models using two component models including an old underlying population and recent superposed starbursts. Our results indicate a strong connection between interactions and vigorous bursts of star formation in these objects. We propose that the starburst ages found are indicative of young ages for the QSO activity. The young starburst ages found are also consistent with the intermediate position of these objects in the far infrared color-color diagram. (abridged)
Infrared quasi-stellar objects (IR QSOs) are a rare subpopulation selected from ultraluminous infrared galaxies (ULIRGs) and have been regarded as promising candidates of ULIRG-to-optical QSO transition objects. Here we present NOEMA observations of the CO(1-0) line and 3 mm continuum emission in an IR QSO IRAS F07599+6508 at $z=0.1486$, which has many properties in common with Mrk 231. The CO emission is found to be resolved with a major axis of $sim$6.1 kpc that is larger than the size of $sim$4.0 kpc derived for 3 mm continuum. We identify two faint CO features located at a projected distance of $sim$11.4 and 19.1 kpc from the galaxy nucleus, respectively, both of which are found to have counterparts in the optical and radio bands and may have a merger origin. A systematic velocity gradient is found in the CO main component, suggesting that the bulk of molecular gas is likely rotationally supported. Based on the radio-to-millimeter spectral energy distribution and IR data, we estimate that about 30$%$ of the flux at 3 mm arises from free-free emission and infer a free-free-derived star formation rate of 77 $M_odot {rm yr^{-1}}$, close to the IR estimate corrected for the AGN contribution. We find a high-velocity CO emission feature at the velocity range of about -1300 to -2000 km s$^{-1}$. Additional deep CO observations are needed to confirm the presence of a possible very high-velocity CO extension of the OH outflow in this IR QSO.
The narrow-line quasar PHL 1092 was observed by XMM-Newton at two epochs separated by nearly thirty months. Timing analyses confirm the extreme variability observed during previous X-ray missions. A measurement of the radiative efficiency is in excess of what is expected from a Schwarzschild black hole. In addition to the rapid X-ray variability, the short UV light curves (< 4 hours) obtained with the Optical Monitor may also show fluctuations, albeit at much lower amplitude than the X-rays. In general, the extreme variability is impressive considering that the broad-band (0.4-10 keV rest-frame) luminosity of the source is ~10^45 erg/s. During at least one of the observations, the X-ray and UV light curves show common trends, although given the short duration of the OM observations, and low significance of the UV light curves it is difficult to comment on the importance of this possible correlation. Interestingly, the high-energy photons (> 2 keV) do not appear highly variable. The X-ray spectrum resembles that of many narrow-line Seyfert 1 type galaxies: an intense soft-excess modelled with a multi-colour disc blackbody, a power-law component, and an absorption line at ~1.4 keV. The ~1.4 keV feature is curious given that it was not detected in previous observations, and its presence could be related to the strength of the soft-excess. Of further interest is curvature in the spectrum above ~2 keV which can be described by a strong reflection component. The strong reflection component, lack of high-energy temporal variability, and extreme radiative efficiency measurements can be understood if we consider gravitational light bending effects close to a maximally rotating black hole.
PHL 1092 is a z~0.4 high-luminosity counterpart of the class of Narrow-Line Seyfert 1 galaxies. In 2008, PHL 1092 was found to be in a remarkably low X-ray flux state during an XMM-Newton observation. Its 2 keV flux density had dropped by a factor of ~260 with respect to a previous observation performed 4.5 yr earlier. The UV flux remained almost constant, resulting in a significant steepening of the optical-to-X-ray slope alpha_ox from -1.57 to -2.51, making PHL 1092 one of the most extreme X-ray weak quasars with no observed broad absorption lines (BALs) in the UV. We have monitored the source since 2008 with three further XMM-Newton observations, producing a simultaneous UV and X-ray database spanning almost 10 yr in total in the activity of the source. Our monitoring program demonstrates that the alpha_ox variability in PHL 1092 is entirely driven by long-term X-ray flux changes. We apply a series of physically-motivated models with the goal of explaining the UV-to-X-ray spectral energy distribution (SED) and the extreme X-ray and alpha_ox variability. We consider three possible models: i) A breathing corona scenario in which the size of the X-ray emitting corona is correlated with the X-ray flux. In this case, the lowest X-ray flux states of PHL 1092 are associated with an almost complete collapse of the X-ray corona down to the marginal stable orbit; ii) An absorption scenario in which the X-ray flux variability is entirely due to intervening absorption. If so, PHL 1092 is a quasar with standard X-ray output for its optical luminosity, appearing as X-ray weak at times due to absorption; iii) A disc-reflection-dominated scenario in which the X-ray emitting corona is confined within a few gravitational radii from the black hole at all times. In this case, the intrinsic variability of PHL 1092 only needs to be a factor of ~10 rather than the observed factor of ~260.