THE IMPACT OF GALAXY INTERACTIONS ON ACTIVE GALACTIC NUCLEUS ACTIVITY IN zCOSMOS

J. D Silverman; P Kampczyk; P Nair; O LE FEVRE; L DE RAVEL; S Bardelli; A Bongiorno; M Bolzonella; A Cappi; K Caputi; C. M Carollo; T Contini; K Jahnke; G Coppa; O Cucciati; S DE LA TORRE; P Franzetti; B Garilli; C Halliday; G Hasinger; A Iovino; C Knobel; A. M Koekemoer; R Andrae; K Kovac; F Lamareille; J.-F LE BORGNE; V LE BRUN; C Maier; M Mignoli; R Pello; E PEREZ-MONTERO; E Ricciardelli; Y Peng; S. J Lilly; M Scodeggio; M Tanaka; L Tasca; L Tresse; D Vergani; E Zucca; M Brusa; N Cappelluti; A Comastri; A Finoguenov; M Elvis; H FU; R Gillio; H Hao; L. C HO; M Salvato; F Civano; V Mainieri; C Vignali; G Zamorani

doi:10.1088/0004-637X/743/1/2

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THE IMPACT OF GALAXY INTERACTIONS ON ACTIVE GALACTIC NUCLEUS ACTIVITY IN zCOSMOS

Journal article

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THE IMPACT OF GALAXY INTERACTIONS ON ACTIVE GALACTIC NUCLEUS ACTIVITY IN zCOSMOS

J. D Silverman, P Kampczyk, P Nair, O LE FEVRE, L DE RAVEL, S Bardelli, A Bongiorno, M Bolzonella, A Cappi, K Caputi, …

The Astrophysical journal, Vol.743(1), 2

2011

DOI: 10.1088/0004-637X/743/1/2

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Abstract

Close encounters between galaxies are expected to be a viable mechanism, as predicted by numerical simulations, by which accretion onto supermassive black holes can be initiated. To test this scenario, we construct a sample of 562 galaxies (M* > 2.5 × 1010 M☉) in kinematic pairs over the redshift range 0.25 < z < 1.05 that are more likely to be interacting than a well-matched control sample of 2726 galaxies not identified as being in a pair, both from the zCOSMOS 20k spectroscopic catalog. Galaxies that harbor an active galactic nucleus (AGN) are identified on the basis of their X-ray emission (L0.5–10 keV > 2 × 1042 erg s−1) detected by Chandra. We find a higher fraction of an AGN in galaxies in pairs relative to isolated galaxies of similar stellar mass. Our result is primarily due to an enhancement of AGN activity, by a factor of 1.9 (observed) and 2.6 (intrinsic), for galaxies in pairs of projected separation less than 75 kpc and line-of-sight velocity offset less than 500 km s−1. This study demonstrates that close kinematic pairs are conducive environments for black hole growth, either indicating a causal physical connection or an inherent relation, such as, to enhanced star formation. In the Appendix, we describe a method for estimating the intrinsic fractions of galaxies (either in pairs or the field) hosting an AGN with confidence intervals, and an excess fraction in pairs. We estimate that 17.8+8.4−7.4% of all moderate-luminosity AGN activity takes place within galaxies undergoing early stages of interaction that leaves open the question as to what physical processes are responsible for fueling the remaining ∼80% that may include late-stage mergers.

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Earth, ocean, space

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Title: Subtitle: THE IMPACT OF GALAXY INTERACTIONS ON ACTIVE GALACTIC NUCLEUS ACTIVITY IN zCOSMOS
Creators: J. D Silverman - ETH Zurich
P Kampczyk - ETH Zurich
P Nair - Osservatorio astronomico di Bologna
O LE FEVRE - Laboratoire d’Astrophysique de Marseille
L DE RAVEL - University of Edinburgh
S Bardelli - Osservatorio astronomico di Bologna
A Bongiorno - Max Planck Society
M Bolzonella - Osservatorio astronomico di Bologna
A Cappi - Osservatorio astronomico di Bologna
K Caputi - University of Edinburgh
C. M Carollo - ETH Zurich
T Contini - Université Toulouse III - Paul Sabatier
K Jahnke - Max Planck Society
G Coppa - Osservatorio astronomico di Bologna
O Cucciati - Laboratoire d’Astrophysique de Marseille
S DE LA TORRE - Laboratoire d’Astrophysique de Marseille
P Franzetti - INAF-IASF Milano, 20133 Milan, Italy
B Garilli - INAF-IASF Milano, 20133 Milan, Italy
C Halliday - INAF Osservatorio Astronomico di Arcetri, 50125 Firenze, Italy
G Hasinger - Max Planck Society
A Iovino - Brera Astronomical Observatory
C Knobel - ETH Zurich
A. M Koekemoer - Space Telescope Science Institute
R Andrae - Max Planck Society
K Kovac - ETH Zurich
F Lamareille - Laboratoire d’Astrophysique de Marseille
J.-F LE BORGNE - Université Toulouse III - Paul Sabatier
V LE BRUN - Laboratoire d’Astrophysique de Marseille
C Maier - ETH Zurich
M Mignoli - Osservatorio astronomico di Bologna
R Pello - Université Toulouse III - Paul Sabatier
E PEREZ-MONTERO - IRAP, Universit de Toulouse, UPS-OMP, Toulouse, France
E Ricciardelli - University of Padua
Y Peng - ETH Zurich
S. J Lilly - ETH Zurich
M Scodeggio - Brera Astronomical Observatory
M Tanaka - The University of Tokyo
L Tasca - Brera Astronomical Observatory
L Tresse - Laboratoire d’Astrophysique de Marseille
D Vergani - Osservatorio astronomico di Bologna
E Zucca - Osservatorio astronomico di Bologna
M Brusa - Max Planck Society
N Cappelluti - Osservatorio astronomico di Bologna
A Comastri - Osservatorio astronomico di Bologna
A Finoguenov - Max Planck Society
M Elvis - Harvard University
H FU - California Institute of Technology
R Gillio - Osservatorio astronomico di Bologna
H Hao - Max Planck Society
L. C HO - Carnegie Institution for Science
M Salvato - Max Planck Society
F Civano - Harvard University
V Mainieri - European Southern Observatory
C Vignali - University of Bologna
G Zamorani - Osservatorio astronomico di Bologna
Resource Type: Journal article
Publication Details: The Astrophysical journal, Vol.743(1), 2
DOI: 10.1088/0004-637X/743/1/2
ISSN: 0004-637X
eISSN: 1538-4357
Publisher: Institute of Physics (IOP)
Language: English
Date published: 2011
Academic Unit: Physics and Astronomy
Record Identifier: 9984199697002771

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