A dichotomy in the 1-24 GHz parsec-scale radio spectra of radio-quiet quasars

Fuente: arXiv
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Autori principali: Chen, Sina, Laor, Ari, Behar, Ehud, Baldi, Ranieri D., Gelfand, Joseph D., Kimball, Amy E.
Natura: Preprint
Pubblicazione: 2024
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author Chen, Sina
Laor, Ari
Behar, Ehud
Baldi, Ranieri D.
Gelfand, Joseph D.
Kimball, Amy E.
author_facet Chen, Sina
Laor, Ari
Behar, Ehud
Baldi, Ranieri D.
Gelfand, Joseph D.
Kimball, Amy E.
contents We present the pc-scale radio spectra of a representative sample of 13 Palomar-Green radio-quiet quasars, based on our new Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA) observations at 8.4 and 23.6 GHz and our earlier VLBA studies at 1.5 and 5.0 GHz. The radio core emission generally exhibits a flat spectrum at 1.5-5.0 GHz, which indicates a compact optically thick synchrotron source on a scale smaller than the broad-line region (BLR) radius R_BLR ~ 0.01-0.1 pc. The 8.4-23.6 GHz spectral slope remains flat in four objects indicating the inner radius of the radio source R_in < 0.1 R_BLR, and becomes steep in four other objects indicating R_in ~ 0.5 R_BLR. The flat 8.4-23.6 GHz slope sources may be associated with a continuous ejection starting at the accretion disk corona. The steep 8.4-23.6 GHz slope sources may be produced by an interaction of an AGN-driven wind with the BLR gas or a low-power jet extending to the BLR scale. Seven of these eight objects, which have a flat or steep 8.4-23.6 GHz slope, reside at the Eddington ratios L/L_Edd < 0.3, and four of the remaining five objects, where the 8.4-23.6 GHz fluxes are too faint to significantly constrain the slope, reside at L/L_Edd > 0.3. The 8.4-23.6 GHz radio emission in the high L/L_Edd objects may be weak due to more extended emission from a radiation pressure driven wind. Future sub-millimeter observations can further constrain the inward radial extent of the radio emission down to the coronal scale.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2410_07889
institution arXiv
publishDate 2024
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle A dichotomy in the 1-24 GHz parsec-scale radio spectra of radio-quiet quasars
Chen, Sina
Laor, Ari
Behar, Ehud
Baldi, Ranieri D.
Gelfand, Joseph D.
Kimball, Amy E.
Astrophysics of Galaxies
We present the pc-scale radio spectra of a representative sample of 13 Palomar-Green radio-quiet quasars, based on our new Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA) observations at 8.4 and 23.6 GHz and our earlier VLBA studies at 1.5 and 5.0 GHz. The radio core emission generally exhibits a flat spectrum at 1.5-5.0 GHz, which indicates a compact optically thick synchrotron source on a scale smaller than the broad-line region (BLR) radius R_BLR ~ 0.01-0.1 pc. The 8.4-23.6 GHz spectral slope remains flat in four objects indicating the inner radius of the radio source R_in < 0.1 R_BLR, and becomes steep in four other objects indicating R_in ~ 0.5 R_BLR. The flat 8.4-23.6 GHz slope sources may be associated with a continuous ejection starting at the accretion disk corona. The steep 8.4-23.6 GHz slope sources may be produced by an interaction of an AGN-driven wind with the BLR gas or a low-power jet extending to the BLR scale. Seven of these eight objects, which have a flat or steep 8.4-23.6 GHz slope, reside at the Eddington ratios L/L_Edd < 0.3, and four of the remaining five objects, where the 8.4-23.6 GHz fluxes are too faint to significantly constrain the slope, reside at L/L_Edd > 0.3. The 8.4-23.6 GHz radio emission in the high L/L_Edd objects may be weak due to more extended emission from a radiation pressure driven wind. Future sub-millimeter observations can further constrain the inward radial extent of the radio emission down to the coronal scale.
title A dichotomy in the 1-24 GHz parsec-scale radio spectra of radio-quiet quasars
topic Astrophysics of Galaxies
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2410.07889