Insights for Early Massive Black Hole Growth from JWST Detection of the [Ne v] λ3427 Emission Line
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| Natura: | Preprint |
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2025
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| author | Trakhtenbrot, Benny Ricci, Claudio Treister, Ezequiel Koss, Michael J. Mushotzky, Richard Oh, Kyuseok Peca, Alessandro Bauer, Franz E. Gupta, Kriti Kamal Reiss, Tomer |
| author_facet | Trakhtenbrot, Benny Ricci, Claudio Treister, Ezequiel Koss, Michael J. Mushotzky, Richard Oh, Kyuseok Peca, Alessandro Bauer, Franz E. Gupta, Kriti Kamal Reiss, Tomer |
| contents | We use the narrow [Ne v] $λ$3427 emission line detected in the recently published JWST spectra of two galaxies, at z = 6.9 and 5.6, to study the key properties of the active galactic nuclei (AGN) and the supermassive black holes (SMBHs) in their centers. Using a new empirical scaling linking the [Ne v] line emission with AGN accretion-driven (continuum) emission, derived from a highly complete low-redshift AGN sample, we show that the [Ne v] emission in the two z > 5 galaxies implies total (bolometric) AGN luminosities of order L_bol~(4-8)x10^45 erg/s. Assuming that the radiation emitted from these systems is Eddington limited, the (minimal) black hole masses are of order M_BH>10^7 M_sun. Combined with the published stellar masses of the galaxies, estimated from dedicated fitting of their spectral energy distributions, the implied BH-to-stellar mass ratios are of order M_BH/M_host~0.1-1. This is considerably higher than what is found in the local Universe, but is consistent with the general trend seen in some other z > 5 AGN. Given the intrinsic weakness of the [Ne v] line and the nature of the [Ne v]-to-L_bol scaling, any (rare) detection of the [Ne v] $λ$3427 line at z > 5 would translate to similarly high AGN luminosities and SMBH masses, thus providing a unique observational path for studying luminous AGN well into the epoch of reionization, including obscured sources. |
| format | Preprint |
| id |
arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2507_10681 |
| institution | arXiv |
| publishDate | 2025 |
| record_format | arxiv |
| spellingShingle | Insights for Early Massive Black Hole Growth from JWST Detection of the [Ne v] λ3427 Emission Line Trakhtenbrot, Benny Ricci, Claudio Treister, Ezequiel Koss, Michael J. Mushotzky, Richard Oh, Kyuseok Peca, Alessandro Bauer, Franz E. Gupta, Kriti Kamal Reiss, Tomer Astrophysics of Galaxies We use the narrow [Ne v] $λ$3427 emission line detected in the recently published JWST spectra of two galaxies, at z = 6.9 and 5.6, to study the key properties of the active galactic nuclei (AGN) and the supermassive black holes (SMBHs) in their centers. Using a new empirical scaling linking the [Ne v] line emission with AGN accretion-driven (continuum) emission, derived from a highly complete low-redshift AGN sample, we show that the [Ne v] emission in the two z > 5 galaxies implies total (bolometric) AGN luminosities of order L_bol~(4-8)x10^45 erg/s. Assuming that the radiation emitted from these systems is Eddington limited, the (minimal) black hole masses are of order M_BH>10^7 M_sun. Combined with the published stellar masses of the galaxies, estimated from dedicated fitting of their spectral energy distributions, the implied BH-to-stellar mass ratios are of order M_BH/M_host~0.1-1. This is considerably higher than what is found in the local Universe, but is consistent with the general trend seen in some other z > 5 AGN. Given the intrinsic weakness of the [Ne v] line and the nature of the [Ne v]-to-L_bol scaling, any (rare) detection of the [Ne v] $λ$3427 line at z > 5 would translate to similarly high AGN luminosities and SMBH masses, thus providing a unique observational path for studying luminous AGN well into the epoch of reionization, including obscured sources. |
| title | Insights for Early Massive Black Hole Growth from JWST Detection of the [Ne v] λ3427 Emission Line |
| topic | Astrophysics of Galaxies |
| url | https://arxiv.org/abs/2507.10681 |