We present near-to-mid-infrared spectral energy distributions (SEDs) for 21 Seyfert galaxies, using subarcsecond resolution imaging data. Our aim is to compare the properties Seyfert 1 (Sy1) and Seyfert 2 (Sy2) tori using clumpy torus models and a Ba
yesian approach to fit the infrared (IR) nuclear SEDs. These dusty tori have physical sizes smaller than 6 pc radius, as derived from our fits. Active galactic nuclei (AGN) unification schemes account for a variety of observational differences in terms of viewing geometry. However, we find evidence that strong unification may not hold, and that the immediate dusty surroundings of Sy1 and Sy2 nuclei are intrinsically different. The Type 2 tori studied here are broader, have more clumps, and these clumps have lower optical depths than those of Type 1 tori. The larger the covering factor of the torus, the smaller the probability of having direct view of the AGN, and vice-versa. In our sample, Sy2 tori have larger covering factors (C_T=0.95+/-0.02) and smaller escape probabilities than those of Sy1 (C_T=0.5+/-0.1). Thus, on the basis of the results presented here, the classification of a Seyfert galaxy may depend more on the intrinsic properties of the torus rather than on its mere inclination, in contradiction with the simplest unification model.
Dust reprocesses the intrinsic radiation of active galactic nuclei (AGNs) to emerge at longer wavelengths. The observed mid-infrared (MIR) luminosity depends fundamentally on the luminosity of the central engine, but in detail it also depends on the
geometric distribution of the surrounding dust. To quantify this relationship, we observe nearby normal AGNs in the MIR to achieve spatial resolution better than 100 pc, and we use absorption-corrected X-ray luminosity as a proxy for the intrinsic AGN emission. We find no significant difference between optically classified Seyfert 1 and 2 galaxies. Spectroscopic differences, both at optical and IR wavelengths, indicate that the immediate surroundings of AGNs is not spherically symmetric, as in standard unified AGN models. A quantitative analysis of clumpy torus radiative transfer models shows that a clumpy local environment can account for this dependence on viewing geometry while producing MIR continuum emission that remains nearly isotropic, as we observe, although the material is not optically thin at these wavelengths. We find some luminosity dependence on the X-ray/MIR correlation in the smallest scale measurements, which may indicate enhanced dust emission associated with star formation, even on these sub-100 pc scales.
We use mid-infrared spectroscopy of unobscured active galactic nuclei (AGNs) to reveal their native dusty environments. We concentrate on Seyfert 1 galaxies, observing a sample of 31 with the Infrared Spectrograph aboard the Spitzer Space Telescope,
and compare them with 21 higher-luminosity quasar counterparts. Silicate dust reprocessing dominates the mid-infrared spectra, and we generally measure the 10 and 18 micron spectral features weakly in emission in these galaxies. The strengths of the two silicate features together are sensitive to the dust distribution. We present numerical radiative transfer calculations that distinguish between clumpy and smooth geometries, which are applicable to any central heating source, including stars as well as AGNs. In the observations, we detect the obscuring ``torus of unified AGN schemes, modeling it as compact and clumpy. We also determine that star formation increases with AGN luminosity, although the proportion of the galaxies bolometric luminosity attributable to stars decreases with AGN luminosity.
We present high spatial resolution mid-IR images of the nuclear region of NGC 5128 (Centaurus A). Images were obtained at 8.8 micron, N-band (10.4 micron), and 18.3 micron using the mid-IR imager/spectrometer T-ReCS on Gemini South. These images show
a bright unresolved core surrounded by low-level extended emission. We place an upper limit to the size of the unresolved nucleus of 3.2 pc (0.19) at 8.8 micron and 3.5 pc (0.21) at 18.3 micron at the level of the FWHM. The most likely source of nuclear mid-IR emission is from a dusty torus and possibly dusty narrow line region with some contribution from synchrotron emission associated with the jet as well as relatively minor starburst activity. Clumpy tori models are presented which predict the mid-IR size of this torus to be no larger than 0.05 (0.85pc). Surrounding the nucleus is extensive low-level mid-IR emission. Previously observed by ISO and Spitzer, this paper presents to date the highest spatial resolution mid-IR images of this extended near nuclear structure. Much of the emission is coincident with Pa-alpha sources seen by HST implying emission from star forming areas, however evidence for jet induced star formation, synchrotron emission from the jet, a nuclear bar/ring, and an extended dusty narrow emission line region is also discussed.
We analyze the mid-infrared (MIR) spectra of ultraluminous infrared galaxies (ULIRGs) observed with the Spitzer Space Telescopes Infrared Spectrograph. Dust emission dominates the MIR spectra of ULIRGs, and the reprocessed radiation that emerges is i
ndependent of the underlying heating spectrum. Instead, the resulting emission depends sensitively on the geometric distribution of the dust, which we diagnose with comparisons of numerical simulations of radiative transfer. Quantifying the silicate emission and absorption features that appear near 10 and 18um requires a reliable determination of the continuum, and we demonstrate that including a measurement of the continuum at intermediate wavelength (between the features) produces accurate results at all optical depths. With high-quality spectra, we successfully use the silicate features to constrain the dust chemistry. The observations of the ULIRGs and local sightlines require dust that has a relatively high 18/10um absorption ratio of the silicate features (around 0.5). Specifically, the cold dust of Ossenkopf et al. (1992) is consistent with the observations, while other dust models are not. We use the silicate feature strengths to identify two families of ULIRGs, in which the dust distributions are fundamentally different. Optical spectral classifications are related to these families. In ULIRGs that harbor an active galactic nucleus, the spectrally broad lines are detected only when the nuclear surroundings are clumpy. In contrast, the sources of lower ionization optical spectra are deeply embedded in smooth distributions of optically thick dust.
