The intrinsic AGN SED & black hole growth at low and high redshift

TYPEAstrophysics Seminar
Speaker:Caterina Lani
Affiliation:Tel Aviv University
Date:10.05.2017
Time:14:30 - 15:30
Location:Lidow 620
Abstract:A long-standing quest in the field of extra-galactic astronomy is the understanding of how Active Galactic Nuclei (AGNs) and their host galaxies impact on the respective evolution. There are observational indications (e.g. M—sigma relation) that indeed AGNs and their hosts could be co-evolving. In my talk I will explore this potential co-evolution by considering black hole growth and star formation activity in AGNs and their hosts, over a range in redshift and AGN bolometric luminosity. I will present a new analysis of the Palomar-Green (PG) quasar sample based on Spitzer and Herschel observations. I will compare two methods to measure star formation luminosity, highlighting why we believe one to be more robust thus turning it into the fiducial method for our work. I will then use our estimates of star formation luminosity, together with well-known parametrisations for the stellar mass—star formation rate and the stellar mass—black hole correlations, to investigate the growth of PG quasars and their hosts. With the aid of other samples I will extend the range of redshift and AGN bolometric luminosity considered, building a larger picture around our study. I will conclude by showing our latest findings in the search for a “universal” intrinsic AGN SED.