Chemical evolution of bulges of active galactic nuclei in the early Universe: roles of accreting stars

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Hauptverfasser: Zhai, Shuo, Wang, Jian-Min, Li, Yan-Rong, Guo, Wei-Jian, Zhao, Gang
Format: Preprint
Veröffentlicht: 2025
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author Zhai, Shuo
Wang, Jian-Min
Li, Yan-Rong
Guo, Wei-Jian
Zhao, Gang
author_facet Zhai, Shuo
Wang, Jian-Min
Li, Yan-Rong
Guo, Wei-Jian
Zhao, Gang
contents JWST/NIRCam observations reveal dense stellar cores in high-redshift galactic bulges, indicative of sustained star formation and potential stellar accretion. We introduce accretion-modified star (AMS) as a new component in the chemical evolution of high-redshift bulges hosting active galactic nuclei (AGNs). The gas-phase chemical evolution of bulge environments containing AMS is modeled within 1 Gyr by combining population evolution and galactic chemical evolution formalisms, and observational signatures are tracked via photoionization modeling on Baldwin-Phillips-Terlevich (BPT) diagrams. Sustained high accretion onto AMSs leads to rapid gas-phase metal enrichment of the bulge, producing abundance peaks up to five times solar metallicity within 0.1 Gyr and significantly modifying elemental ratios in the gas phase. Atypical gas-phase abundance patterns during early, high-accretion phases and gradually diminish as the accretion rate declines. In BPT diagrams, high-AMS-accretion scenarios shift the modeled emission-line sequence toward the local AGN branch and extend into the high-metallicity regime. Super-solar narrow-line regions observed in AGNs at z>15 may reflect such AMS-driven gas-phase enrichment of host bulge under extreme gas densities. While direct detection of AMSs within AGN bulges remains challenging, the model provides testable predictions for future spectroscopic surveys and motivates further exploration of non-canonical stellar populations in AGN host bulges.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2511_16119
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Chemical evolution of bulges of active galactic nuclei in the early Universe: roles of accreting stars
Zhai, Shuo
Wang, Jian-Min
Li, Yan-Rong
Guo, Wei-Jian
Zhao, Gang
Astrophysics of Galaxies
JWST/NIRCam observations reveal dense stellar cores in high-redshift galactic bulges, indicative of sustained star formation and potential stellar accretion. We introduce accretion-modified star (AMS) as a new component in the chemical evolution of high-redshift bulges hosting active galactic nuclei (AGNs). The gas-phase chemical evolution of bulge environments containing AMS is modeled within 1 Gyr by combining population evolution and galactic chemical evolution formalisms, and observational signatures are tracked via photoionization modeling on Baldwin-Phillips-Terlevich (BPT) diagrams. Sustained high accretion onto AMSs leads to rapid gas-phase metal enrichment of the bulge, producing abundance peaks up to five times solar metallicity within 0.1 Gyr and significantly modifying elemental ratios in the gas phase. Atypical gas-phase abundance patterns during early, high-accretion phases and gradually diminish as the accretion rate declines. In BPT diagrams, high-AMS-accretion scenarios shift the modeled emission-line sequence toward the local AGN branch and extend into the high-metallicity regime. Super-solar narrow-line regions observed in AGNs at z>15 may reflect such AMS-driven gas-phase enrichment of host bulge under extreme gas densities. While direct detection of AMSs within AGN bulges remains challenging, the model provides testable predictions for future spectroscopic surveys and motivates further exploration of non-canonical stellar populations in AGN host bulges.
title Chemical evolution of bulges of active galactic nuclei in the early Universe: roles of accreting stars
topic Astrophysics of Galaxies
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2511.16119