An Intermediate-mass Black Hole Hidden behind Thick Obscuration
Recent models suggest approximately half of all accreting supermassive black holes (SMBHs; M BH ≳ 10 5 M ⊙ ) are expected to undergo intense growth phases behind Compton-thick ( N H > 1.5 × 10 24 cm −2 ) veils of obscuring gas. However, despite being a viable source for the seeding of SMBHs, ther...
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| Veröffentlicht in: | The Astrophysical journal 2024-11, Vol.975 (2), p.230 |
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| creator | Boorman, Peter G. Stern, Daniel Assef, Roberto J. Borkar, Abhijeet Brightman, Murray Buchner, Johannes Chen, Chien-Ting Earnshaw, Hannah P. Harrison, Fiona A. Matzeu, Gabriele A. Pfeifle, Ryan W. Ricci, Claudio Svoboda, Jiří Torres-Albà, Núria Zaw, Ingyin |
| description | Recent models suggest approximately half of all accreting supermassive black holes (SMBHs; M BH ≳ 10 5 M ⊙ ) are expected to undergo intense growth phases behind Compton-thick ( N H > 1.5 × 10 24 cm −2 ) veils of obscuring gas. However, despite being a viable source for the seeding of SMBHs, there are currently no examples known of a Compton-thick accreting intermediate-mass black hole (IMBH; M BH ∼ 10 2 –10 5 M ⊙ ). We present a detailed X-ray spectral analysis of IC 750—the only active galactic nuclei (AGN) to date with a precise megamaser-based intermediate mass 99% confidence. Compton-thick obscuration is well-documented to impinge substantial bias on the pursuit of SMBH AGN. Our results thus provide the first indication that Compton-thick obscuration should also be properly considered to uncover and understand the IMBH population in an unbiased manner. |
| doi_str_mv | 10.3847/1538-4357/ad7f56 |
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However, despite being a viable source for the seeding of SMBHs, there are currently no examples known of a Compton-thick accreting intermediate-mass black hole (IMBH; M BH ∼ 10 2 –10 5 M ⊙ ). We present a detailed X-ray spectral analysis of IC 750—the only active galactic nuclei (AGN) to date with a precise megamaser-based intermediate mass <10 5 M ⊙ . We find the equivalent width of neutral 6.4 keV Fe K α to be 1.9 − 1.0 + 2.2 keV via phenomenological modeling of the coadded 177 ks Chandra spectrum. Such large equivalent widths are seldom produced by processes other than fluorescence from dense obscuration. We fit three physically motivated X-ray spectral models to infer a range of possible intrinsic 2–10 keV luminosity posteriors that encompass the systematic uncertainties associated with a choice of model. Despite a wide range of predicted intrinsic 2–10 keV luminosities between ∼ 10 41 and 10 43 erg s −1 , all three models agree that IC 750 has a Compton-thick line-of-sight column density to >99% confidence. Compton-thick obscuration is well-documented to impinge substantial bias on the pursuit of SMBH AGN. Our results thus provide the first indication that Compton-thick obscuration should also be properly considered to uncover and understand the IMBH population in an unbiased manner.</description><identifier>ISSN: 0004-637X</identifier><identifier>EISSN: 1538-4357</identifier><identifier>DOI: 10.3847/1538-4357/ad7f56</identifier><language>eng</language><publisher>Philadelphia: The American Astronomical Society</publisher><subject>Active galactic nuclei ; Active galaxies ; Black holes ; Equivalence ; Intermediate-mass black holes ; Line of sight ; Luminosity ; Occultation ; Spectral analysis ; Spectrum analysis ; Supermassive black holes ; X ray spectra ; X-ray active galactic nuclei ; X-ray astronomy</subject><ispartof>The Astrophysical journal, 2024-11, Vol.975 (2), p.230</ispartof><rights>2024. The Author(s). Published by the American Astronomical Society.</rights><rights>2024. The Author(s). Published by the American Astronomical Society. 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Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.</rights><lds50>peer_reviewed</lds50><oa>free_for_read</oa><woscitedreferencessubscribed>false</woscitedreferencessubscribed><cites>FETCH-LOGICAL-c299t-3a85a1e0950127f99235383d724a3c2632e94818c4f8960789e61a0fa91b31bf3</cites><orcidid>0000-0002-9807-4520 ; 0000-0002-9508-3667 ; 0000-0002-4945-5079 ; 0000-0001-5857-5622 ; 0000-0002-4226-8959 ; 0000-0003-1994-5322 ; 0000-0001-5231-2645 ; 0000-0002-5208-1426 ; 0000-0003-2931-0742 ; 0000-0002-8147-2602 ; 0000-0001-8640-8522 ; 0000-0003-3638-8943 ; 0000-0003-2686-9241 ; 0000-0003-0426-6634 ; 0000-0001-9379-4716</orcidid></display><links><openurl>$$Topenurl_article</openurl><openurlfulltext>$$Topenurlfull_article</openurlfulltext><thumbnail>$$Tsyndetics_thumb_exl</thumbnail><linktopdf>$$Uhttps://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/1538-4357/ad7f56/pdf$$EPDF$$P50$$Giop$$Hfree_for_read</linktopdf><link.rule.ids>315,781,785,865,2103,27929,27930,38895,53872</link.rule.ids></links><search><creatorcontrib>Boorman, Peter G.</creatorcontrib><creatorcontrib>Stern, Daniel</creatorcontrib><creatorcontrib>Assef, Roberto J.</creatorcontrib><creatorcontrib>Borkar, Abhijeet</creatorcontrib><creatorcontrib>Brightman, Murray</creatorcontrib><creatorcontrib>Buchner, Johannes</creatorcontrib><creatorcontrib>Chen, Chien-Ting</creatorcontrib><creatorcontrib>Earnshaw, Hannah P.</creatorcontrib><creatorcontrib>Harrison, Fiona A.</creatorcontrib><creatorcontrib>Matzeu, Gabriele A.</creatorcontrib><creatorcontrib>Pfeifle, Ryan W.</creatorcontrib><creatorcontrib>Ricci, Claudio</creatorcontrib><creatorcontrib>Svoboda, Jiří</creatorcontrib><creatorcontrib>Torres-Albà, Núria</creatorcontrib><creatorcontrib>Zaw, Ingyin</creatorcontrib><title>An Intermediate-mass Black Hole Hidden behind Thick Obscuration</title><title>The Astrophysical journal</title><addtitle>APJ</addtitle><addtitle>Astrophys. 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J</addtitle><date>2024-11-01</date><risdate>2024</risdate><volume>975</volume><issue>2</issue><spage>230</spage><pages>230-</pages><issn>0004-637X</issn><eissn>1538-4357</eissn><abstract>Recent models suggest approximately half of all accreting supermassive black holes (SMBHs; M BH ≳ 10 5 M ⊙ ) are expected to undergo intense growth phases behind Compton-thick ( N H > 1.5 × 10 24 cm −2 ) veils of obscuring gas. However, despite being a viable source for the seeding of SMBHs, there are currently no examples known of a Compton-thick accreting intermediate-mass black hole (IMBH; M BH ∼ 10 2 –10 5 M ⊙ ). We present a detailed X-ray spectral analysis of IC 750—the only active galactic nuclei (AGN) to date with a precise megamaser-based intermediate mass <10 5 M ⊙ . We find the equivalent width of neutral 6.4 keV Fe K α to be 1.9 − 1.0 + 2.2 keV via phenomenological modeling of the coadded 177 ks Chandra spectrum. Such large equivalent widths are seldom produced by processes other than fluorescence from dense obscuration. We fit three physically motivated X-ray spectral models to infer a range of possible intrinsic 2–10 keV luminosity posteriors that encompass the systematic uncertainties associated with a choice of model. Despite a wide range of predicted intrinsic 2–10 keV luminosities between ∼ 10 41 and 10 43 erg s −1 , all three models agree that IC 750 has a Compton-thick line-of-sight column density to >99% confidence. Compton-thick obscuration is well-documented to impinge substantial bias on the pursuit of SMBH AGN. 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| subjects | Active galactic nuclei Active galaxies Black holes Equivalence Intermediate-mass black holes Line of sight Luminosity Occultation Spectral analysis Spectrum analysis Supermassive black holes X ray spectra X-ray active galactic nuclei X-ray astronomy |
| title | An Intermediate-mass Black Hole Hidden behind Thick Obscuration |
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