Gemini Near Infrared Spectrograph$-$Distant Quasar Survey: the Chandra View

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Main Authors: Marlar, Andrea, Shemmer, Ohad, Brotherton, Michael S., Richards, Gordon T., Dix, Cooper, Matthews, Brandon M., Brandt, W. N., Plotkin, R. M.
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
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author Marlar, Andrea
Shemmer, Ohad
Brotherton, Michael S.
Richards, Gordon T.
Dix, Cooper
Matthews, Brandon M.
Brandt, W. N.
Plotkin, R. M.
author_facet Marlar, Andrea
Shemmer, Ohad
Brotherton, Michael S.
Richards, Gordon T.
Dix, Cooper
Matthews, Brandon M.
Brandt, W. N.
Plotkin, R. M.
contents We present Chandra observations of 63 sources from the Gemini Near Infrared Spectrograph$-$Distant Quasar Survey (GNIRS-DQS) of which 54 were targeted by snapshot observations in Cycle 24. A total of 55 sources are clearly detected in at least one X-ray band, and we set stringent upper limits on the X-ray fluxes of the remaining eight sources. In combination with rest-frame ultraviolet-optical spectroscopic data for these sources, we assess whether X-rays can provide a robust accretion-rate indicator for quasars, particularly at the highest accessible redshifts. We utilize a recently modified H$β$-based Eddington luminosity ratio estimator, as well as the C IV $λ$1549 emission-line parameter space to investigate trends and correlations with the optical-X-ray spectral slope ($α_{\mathrm{ox}}$) and the effective hard-X-ray power-law photon index ($Γ$). We find that $α_{\mathrm{ox}}$ does not improve current accretion-rate estimates based on H$β$ or C IV. Instead, within the limitations of our sample, we confirm previous findings that the C IV parameter space may be a better indicator of the accretion rate up to $z\sim3.5$. We also find that the average $Γ$ values for a small subset of our sources, as well as the average $Γ$ value in different groupings of our sources, are consistent with their respective relatively high Eddington luminosity ratios. Deeper X-ray observations of our X-ray-detected sources are needed for measuring $Γ$ accurately and testing whether this parameter can serve as a robust, un-biased accretion-rate diagnostic.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2507_22272
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Gemini Near Infrared Spectrograph$-$Distant Quasar Survey: the Chandra View
Marlar, Andrea
Shemmer, Ohad
Brotherton, Michael S.
Richards, Gordon T.
Dix, Cooper
Matthews, Brandon M.
Brandt, W. N.
Plotkin, R. M.
Astrophysics of Galaxies
We present Chandra observations of 63 sources from the Gemini Near Infrared Spectrograph$-$Distant Quasar Survey (GNIRS-DQS) of which 54 were targeted by snapshot observations in Cycle 24. A total of 55 sources are clearly detected in at least one X-ray band, and we set stringent upper limits on the X-ray fluxes of the remaining eight sources. In combination with rest-frame ultraviolet-optical spectroscopic data for these sources, we assess whether X-rays can provide a robust accretion-rate indicator for quasars, particularly at the highest accessible redshifts. We utilize a recently modified H$β$-based Eddington luminosity ratio estimator, as well as the C IV $λ$1549 emission-line parameter space to investigate trends and correlations with the optical-X-ray spectral slope ($α_{\mathrm{ox}}$) and the effective hard-X-ray power-law photon index ($Γ$). We find that $α_{\mathrm{ox}}$ does not improve current accretion-rate estimates based on H$β$ or C IV. Instead, within the limitations of our sample, we confirm previous findings that the C IV parameter space may be a better indicator of the accretion rate up to $z\sim3.5$. We also find that the average $Γ$ values for a small subset of our sources, as well as the average $Γ$ value in different groupings of our sources, are consistent with their respective relatively high Eddington luminosity ratios. Deeper X-ray observations of our X-ray-detected sources are needed for measuring $Γ$ accurately and testing whether this parameter can serve as a robust, un-biased accretion-rate diagnostic.
title Gemini Near Infrared Spectrograph$-$Distant Quasar Survey: the Chandra View
topic Astrophysics of Galaxies
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2507.22272