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Evidence for Gravitational Infall of Matter onto the Super-Massive Black Hole in the quasar PG 1211+143?

J. N. Reeves·K. Pounds·P. Uttley·S. Kraemer·R Mushotzky·T. Yaqoob·I. M. George·T. J. Turner
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Abstract

We report the detection of redshifted iron K-alpha absorption lines in the Chandra LETG spectrum of the narrow-line quasar, PG 1211+143. The absorption lines are observed at 4.22 keV and 4.93 keV in the quasar spectrum, corresponding to 4.56 keV and 5.33 keV in the rest frame of PG 1211+143. From Monte Carlo simulations, the chance probability of both lines being false detections is low at 1.36e-04. Highly redshifted ionized iron K-alpha (Fe XXV or Fe XXVI) is the most plausible identification for the lines at their observed energies. If identified with H-like iron K-alpha at 6.97 keV, then the relativistic velocity shifts required are 0.40c and 0.26c. The extreme velocities can be explained by pure gravitational redshift if the matter exists in a stable orbit within 6 gravitational radii of the black hole. This would require a Kerr metric for the black hole. Alternatively the absorption may be the result of matter infalling directly onto the black hole, with a maximum observed velocity of 0.38c at 6Rg in the Schwarzschild metric. This matter may originate in a failed outflow or jet, which does not escape the gravitational potential of the black hole.

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J. N. Reeves, K. Pounds, P. Uttley, S. Kraemer, R Mushotzky, T. Yaqoob, I. M. George, T. J. Turner. 2005-09-11. Evidence for Gravitational Infall of Matter onto the Super-Massive Black Hole in the quasar PG 1211+143?. https://doi.org/10.1086/498568

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