A CANDIDATE DUAL ACTIVE GALACTIC NUCLEUS AT z = 1.175
- Arkansas Center for Space and Planetary Sciences, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR 72701 (United States)
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, 4800 Oak Grove Drive, Pasadena, CA 91109 (United States)
- California Institute of Technology, 1200 East California Boulevard, Pasadena, CA 91125 (United States)
- Astronomy Department, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712 (United States)
- Department of Physics, University of California at Davis, One Shields Avenue, Davis, CA 95616 (United States)
- Department of Astronomy, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611 (United States)
- Infrared Processing and Analysis Center, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125 (United States)
- Department of Physics, Durham University, Durham DHI 3LE (United Kingdom)
The X-ray source CXOXBJ142607.6+353351 (CXOJ1426+35), which was identified in a 172 ks Chandra image in the Booetes field, shows double-peaked rest-frame optical/UV emission lines, separated by 0.''69 (5.5 kpc) in the spatial dimension and by 690 km s{sup -1} in the velocity dimension. The high excitation lines and emission line ratios indicate both systems are ionized by an active galactic nucleus (AGN) continuum, and the double-peaked profile resembles that of candidate dual AGNs. At a redshift of z = 1.175, this source is the highest redshift candidate dual AGN yet identified. However, many sources have similar emission line profiles for which other interpretations are favored. We have analyzed the substantial archival data available in this field as well as acquired near-infrared (NIR) adaptive optics (AO) imaging and NIR slit spectroscopy. The X-ray spectrum is hard, implying a column density of several 10{sup 23} cm{sup -2}. Though heavily obscured, the source is also one of the brightest in the field, with an absorption-corrected 2-10 keV luminosity of {approx}10{sup 45} erg s{sup -1}. Outflows driven by an accretion disk may produce the double-peaked lines if the central engine accretes near the Eddington limit. However, we may be seeing the narrow line regions of two AGNs following a galactic merger. While the AO image reveals only a single source, a second AGN would easily be obscured by the significant extinction inferred from the X-ray data. Understanding the physical processes producing the complex emission line profiles seen in CXOJ1426+35 and related sources is important for interpreting the growing population of dual AGN candidates.
- OSTI ID:
- 22004376
- Journal Information:
- Astrophysical Journal, Vol. 744, 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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