The $N_H$ Distribution of Hard X-ray Selected AGN in the NEP Field
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| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Preprint |
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2025
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| _version_ | 1866912684944916480 |
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| author | Creech, Samantha Civano, Francesca Wik, Daniel R. Silver, Ross Zhao, Xiurui Ortiz III, Rafael Ananna, Tonima Grogin, Normal A. Jansen, Rolf Koekemoer, Anton M. Willmer, Christopher N. A. Windhorst, Rogier A. |
| author_facet | Creech, Samantha Civano, Francesca Wik, Daniel R. Silver, Ross Zhao, Xiurui Ortiz III, Rafael Ananna, Tonima Grogin, Normal A. Jansen, Rolf Koekemoer, Anton M. Willmer, Christopher N. A. Windhorst, Rogier A. |
| contents | X-ray surveys are one of the most unbiased methods for detecting Compton Thick (CT; $N_{\mathrm{H}} \geq 10^{24}$ cm$^{-2}$) AGN, which are thought to comprise up to $60\%$ of AGN within $z \lesssim 1.0$. These CT AGN are often difficult to detect with current instruments, but the X-ray data within the JWST-North Ecliptic Pole (NEP) Time Domain Field (TDF) present a unique opportunity to study faint and obscured AGN. The NEP contains the deepest NuSTAR survey to date, and Zhao et al. (2024) detected 60 hard X-ray sources from the combined exposure of NuSTAR's Cycle 5 and 6 observations. In this work, we utilize the NuSTAR Cycle 5+6+8+9 data and simultaneous XMM-Newton observations in order to perform the first spectroscopic analysis of the 60-source catalog. We present this analysis and measure the $N_{\mathrm{H}}$ distribution of the sample. We measure an observed CT fraction of $0.13_{-0.04}^{+0.15}$ down to an observed $8-24$ keV flux of $6.0 \times 10^{-14}$ erg/s/cm$^{2}$, and we correct our analysis for absorption bias to estimate an underlying CT fraction of $0.32_{-0.08}^{+0.23}$. The derived obscuration distribution and CT fraction are consistent with population synthesis models and previous surveys. |
| format | Preprint |
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arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2510_26554 |
| institution | arXiv |
| publishDate | 2025 |
| record_format | arxiv |
| spellingShingle | The $N_H$ Distribution of Hard X-ray Selected AGN in the NEP Field Creech, Samantha Civano, Francesca Wik, Daniel R. Silver, Ross Zhao, Xiurui Ortiz III, Rafael Ananna, Tonima Grogin, Normal A. Jansen, Rolf Koekemoer, Anton M. Willmer, Christopher N. A. Windhorst, Rogier A. High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena X-ray surveys are one of the most unbiased methods for detecting Compton Thick (CT; $N_{\mathrm{H}} \geq 10^{24}$ cm$^{-2}$) AGN, which are thought to comprise up to $60\%$ of AGN within $z \lesssim 1.0$. These CT AGN are often difficult to detect with current instruments, but the X-ray data within the JWST-North Ecliptic Pole (NEP) Time Domain Field (TDF) present a unique opportunity to study faint and obscured AGN. The NEP contains the deepest NuSTAR survey to date, and Zhao et al. (2024) detected 60 hard X-ray sources from the combined exposure of NuSTAR's Cycle 5 and 6 observations. In this work, we utilize the NuSTAR Cycle 5+6+8+9 data and simultaneous XMM-Newton observations in order to perform the first spectroscopic analysis of the 60-source catalog. We present this analysis and measure the $N_{\mathrm{H}}$ distribution of the sample. We measure an observed CT fraction of $0.13_{-0.04}^{+0.15}$ down to an observed $8-24$ keV flux of $6.0 \times 10^{-14}$ erg/s/cm$^{2}$, and we correct our analysis for absorption bias to estimate an underlying CT fraction of $0.32_{-0.08}^{+0.23}$. The derived obscuration distribution and CT fraction are consistent with population synthesis models and previous surveys. |
| title | The $N_H$ Distribution of Hard X-ray Selected AGN in the NEP Field |
| topic | High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena |
| url | https://arxiv.org/abs/2510.26554 |