A SEARCH FOR FAST X-RAY VARIABILITY FROM ACTIVE GALACTIC NUCLEI USING SWIFT
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802 (United States)
Blazars are a class of active galactic nuclei (AGNs) known for their very rapid variabilty in the high energy regions of the electromagnetic spectrum. Despite this known fast variability, X-ray observations have generally not revealed variability in blazars with rate doubling or halving timescales less than approximately 15 minutes. Since its launch, the Swift X-ray Telescope has obtained 0.2–10 keV X-ray data on 143 AGNs, including blazars, through intense target of opportunity observations that can be analyzed in a multiwavelength context and used to model jet parameters, particularly during flare states. We have analyzed this broad Swift data set in a search for short timescale variability in blazars that could limit the size of the emission region in the blazar jet. While we do find several low-significance possible flares with potential indications of rapid variability, we find no strong evidence for rapid (<15 minutes) doubling or halving times in flares in the soft X-ray energy band for the AGNs analyzed.
- OSTI ID:
- 22522542
- Journal Information:
- Astrophysical Journal, Vol. 802, 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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