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HST WFC3/IR OBSERVATIONS OF ACTIVE GALACTIC NUCLEUS HOST GALAXIES AT z ~ 2: SUPERMASSIVE BLACK HOLES GROW IN DISK GALAXIES

Author(s)
Schawinski, Kevin; Treister, Ezequiel; Urry, C. Megan; Cardamone, Carolin; Simmons, Brooke; Yi, Sukyoung K.; ... Show more Show less
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Abstract
We present the rest-frame optical morphologies of active galactic nucleus (AGN) host galaxies at 1.5 < z < 3, using near-infrared imaging from the Hubble Space Telescope Wide Field Camera 3, the first such study of AGN host galaxies at these redshifts. The AGNs are X-ray-selected from the Chandra Deep Field South and have typical luminosities of 10[superscript 42] erg s[superscript –1]<L [subscript X] < 10[superscript 44] erg s[superscript –1]. Accreting black holes in this luminosity and redshift range account for a substantial fraction of the total space density and black hole mass growth over cosmic time; they thus represent an important mode of black hole growth in the universe. We find that the majority (~80%) of the host galaxies of these AGNs have low Sérsic indices indicative of disk-dominated light profiles, suggesting that secular processes govern a significant fraction of the cosmic growth of black holes. That is, many black holes in the present-day universe grew much of their mass in disk-dominated galaxies and not in early-type galaxies or major mergers. The properties of the AGN host galaxies are furthermore indistinguishable from their parent galaxy population and we find no strong evolution in either effective radii or morphological mix between z ~ 2 and z ~ 0.05.
Date issued
2011-01
URI
http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/95706
Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Physics
Journal
The Astrophysical Journal. Letters
Publisher
IOP Publishing
Citation
Schawinski, Kevin, Ezequiel Treister, C. Megan Urry, Carolin N. Cardamone, Brooke Simmons, and Sukyoung K. Yi. "HST WFC3/IR OBSERVATIONS OF ACTIVE GALACTIC NUCLEUS HOST GALAXIES AT z ~ 2: SUPERMASSIVE BLACK HOLES GROW IN DISK GALAXIES.” The Astrophysical Journal 727, no. 2 (January 6, 2011): L31. © 2011 The American Astronomical Society
Version: Final published version
ISSN
2041-8205
2041-8213

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