X-RAY CONSTRAINTS ON THE LOCAL SUPERMASSIVE BLACK HOLE OCCUPATION FRACTION
- Department of Astronomy, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109 (United States)
- Department of Astrophysics, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544 (United States)
- Physics Department, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA 93106 (United States)
- Astronomy Program, Department of Physics and Astronomy, Seoul National University, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)
Distinct seed formation mechanisms are imprinted upon the fraction of dwarf galaxies currently containing a central supermassive black hole. Seeding by Population III remnants is expected to produce a higher occupation fraction than is generated with direct gas collapse precursors. Chandra observations of nearby early-type galaxies can directly detect even low-level supermassive black hole activity, and the active fraction immediately provides a firm lower limit to the occupation fraction. Here, we use the volume-limited AMUSE surveys of ∼200 optically selected early-type galaxies to characterize simultaneously, for the first time, the occupation fraction and the scaling of L {sub X} with M {sub star}, accounting for intrinsic scatter, measurement uncertainties, and X-ray limits. For early-type galaxies with M {sub star} < 10{sup 10} M {sub ☉}, we obtain a lower limit to the occupation fraction of >20% (at 95% confidence), but full occupation cannot be excluded. The preferred dependence of log L {sub X} upon log M {sub star} has a slope of ∼0.7-0.8, consistent with the ''downsizing'' trend previously identified from the AMUSE data set, and a uniform Eddington efficiency is disfavored at ∼2σ. We provide guidelines for the future precision with which these parameters may be refined with larger or more sensitive samples.
- OSTI ID:
- 22364436
- Journal Information:
- Astrophysical Journal, Vol. 799, Issue 1; Other Information: Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0004-637X
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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