arXiv subjects

Takamitsu Miyaji

Publications and source records attributed to Takamitsu Miyaji.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

arXiv2010

The bulk of the black hole growth since z~1 occurs in a secular universe: No major merger-AGN connection

What is the relevance of major mergers and interactions as triggering mechanisms for active galactic nuclei (AGN) activity? To answer this longstanding question, we analyze 140 XMM-selected AGN host galaxies and a matched control sample of 1264 inactive galaxies over z~0.3-1.0 and log(M_*/M_sun)<11.7 with high-resolution HST/ACS imaging from the COSMOS field. The visual analysis of their morphologies by 10 independent human classifiers yields a measure of the fraction of distorted morphologies in the AGN and control samples, i.e. quantifying the signature of recent mergers which might potentially be responsible for fueling/triggering the AGN. We find that (1) the vast majority (>85%) of the AGN host galaxies do not show strong distortions, and (2) there is no significant difference in the distortion fractions between active and inactive galaxies. Our findings provide the best direct evidence that, since z~1, the bulk of black hole accretion has not been triggered by major galaxy mergers, therefore arguing that the alternative mechanisms, i.e., secular processes and minor interactions, are the leading triggers for the episodes of major black hole growth. We also exclude an alternative interpretation of our results: a significant time lag between merging and the observability of the AGN phase could wash out the most significant merging signatures, explaining the lack of enhancement of strong distortions on the AGN hosts. We show that this alternative scenario is unlikely due to: (1) recent major mergers being ruled out for the majority of sources due to the high fraction of disk-hosted AGN, (2) the lack of a significant X-ray signal in merging inactive galaxies as a signature of a potential buried AGN, and (3) the low levels of soft X-ray obscuration for AGN hosted by interacting galaxies, in contrast to model predictions.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2010

The Spatial Clustering of ROSAT All-Sky Survey AGNs II. Halo Occupation Distribution Modeling of the Cross Correlation Function

This is the second paper of a series that reports on our investigation of the clustering properties of AGNs in the ROSAT All-Sky Survey (RASS) through cross-correlation functions (CCFs) with Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) galaxies. In this paper, we apply the Halo Occupation Distribution (HOD) model to the CCFs between the RASS Broad-line AGNs with SDSS Luminous Red Galaxies (LRGs) in the redshift range 0.16<z<0.36 that was calculated in paper I. In our HOD modeling approach, we use the known HOD of LRGs and constrain the HOD of the AGNs by a model fit to the CCF. For the first time, we are able to go beyond quoting merely a `typical' AGN host halo mass, M_h, and model the full distribution function of AGN host dark matter halos. In addition, we are able to determine the large-scale bias and the mean M_h more accurately. We explore the behavior of three simple HOD models. Our first model (Model A) is a truncated power-law HOD model in which all AGNs are satellites. With this model, we find an upper limit to the slope (α) of the AGN HOD that is far below unity. The other two models have a central component, which has a step function form, where the HOD is constant above a minimum mass, without (Model B) or with (Model C) an upper mass cutoff, in addition to the truncated power-law satellite component, similar to the HOD that is found for galaxies. In these two models we find the upper limits of α< 0.95 and α< 0.84 for Model B and C respectively. Our analysis suggests that the satellite AGN occupation increases slower than, or may even decrease with, M_h, in contrast to the satellite's HODs of luminosity-threshold samples of galaxies, which, in contrast, grow approximately as \propto M_h^αwith α\approx 1. These results are consistent with observations that the AGN fraction in groups and clusters decreases with richness.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2010

The Spatial Clustering of ROSAT All-Sky Survey AGN: I. The cross-correlation function with SDSS Luminous Red Galaxies

We investigate the clustering properties of ~1550 broad-line active galactic nuclei (AGNs) at =0.25 detected in the ROSAT All-Sky Survey (RASS) through their measured cross-correlation function with ~46,000 Luminous Red Galaxies (LRGs) in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. By measuring the cross-correlation of our AGN sample with a larger tracer set of LRGs, we both minimize shot noise errors due to the relatively small AGN sample size and avoid systematic errors due to the spatially varying Galactic absorption that would affect direct measurements of the auto-correlation function (ACF) of the AGN sample. The measured ACF correlation length for the total RASS-AGN sample ( =1.5 x 10^(44) erg/s) is r_0=4.3^{+0.4}_{-0.5} h^(-1) Mpc and the slope γ=1.7^{+0.1}_{-0.1}. Splitting the sample into low and high L_X samples at L_(0.5-10 keV)=10^(44) erg/s, we detect an X-ray luminosity dependence of the clustering amplitude at the ~2.5 σlevel. The low L_X sample has r_0=3.3^{+0.6}_{-0.8} h^(-1) Mpc (γ=1.7^{+0.4}_{-0.3}), which is similar to the correlation length of blue star-forming galaxies at low redshift. The high L_X sample has r_0=5.4^{+0.7}_{-1.0} h^(-1) Mpc (γ=1.9^{+0.2}_{-0.2}), which is consistent with the clustering of red galaxies. From the observed clustering amplitude, we infer that the typical dark matter halo (DMH) mass harboring RASS-AGN with broad optical emission lines is log (M_DMH/(h^(-1) M_SUN)) =12.6^{+0.2}_{-0.3}, 11.8^{+0.6}_{-\infty}, 13.1^{+0.2}_{-0.4} for the total, low L_X, and high L_X RASS-AGN samples, respectively.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2009

The Synoptic All-Sky Infrared (SASIR) Survey

We are proposing to conduct a multicolor, synoptic infrared (IR) imaging survey of the Northern sky with a new, dedicated 6.5-meter telescope at San Pedro Mártir (SPM) Observatory. This initiative is being developed in partnership with astronomy institutions in Mexico and the University of California. The 4-year, dedicated survey, planned to begin in 2017, will reach more than 100 times deeper than 2MASS. The Synoptic All-Sky Infrared (SASIR) Survey will reveal the missing sample of faint red dwarf stars in the local solar neighborhood, and the unprecedented sensitivity over such a wide field will result in the discovery of thousands of z ~ 7 quasars (and reaching to z > 10), allowing detailed study (in concert with JWST and Giant Segmented Mirror Telescopes) of the timing and the origin(s) of reionization. As a time-domain survey, SASIR will reveal the dynamic infrared universe, opening new phase space for discovery. Synoptic observations of over 10^6 supernovae and variable stars will provide better distance measures than optical studies alone. SASIR also provides significant synergy with other major Astro2010 facilities, improving the overall scientific return of community investments. Compared to optical-only measurements, IR colors vastly improve photometric redshifts to z ~ 4, enhancing dark energy and dark matter surveys based on weak lensing and baryon oscillations. The wide field and ToO capabilities will enable a connection of the gravitational wave and neutrino universe - with events otherwise poorly localized on the sky - to transient electromagnetic phenomena.

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2009

The Chandra COSMOS Survey, I: Overview and Point Source Catalog

The Chandra COSMOS Survey (C-COSMOS) is a large, 1.8 Ms, Chandra} program that has imaged the central 0.5 sq.deg of the COSMOS field (centered at 10h, +02deg) with an effective exposure of ~160ksec, and an outer 0.4sq.deg. area with an effective exposure of ~80ksec. The limiting source detection depths are 1.9e-16 erg cm(-2) s(-1) in the Soft (0.5-2 keV) band, 7.3e(-16) erg cm^-2 s^-1 in the Hard (2-10 keV) band, and 5.7e(-16) erg cm(-2) s(-1) in the Full (0.5-10 keV) band. Here we describe the strategy, design and execution of the C-COSMOS survey, and present the catalog of 1761 point sources detected at a probability of being spurious of <2e(-5) (1655 in the Full, 1340 in the Soft, and 1017 in the Hard bands). By using a grid of 36 heavily (~50%) overlapping pointing positions with the ACIS-I imager, a remarkably uniform (to 12%) exposure across the inner 0.5 sq.deg field was obtained, leading to a sharply defined lower flux limit. The widely different PSFs obtained in each exposure at each point in the field required a novel source detection method, because of the overlapping tiling strategy, which is described in a companion paper. (Puccetti et al. Paper II). This method produced reliable sources down to a 7-12 counts, as verified by the resulting logN-logS curve, with sub-arcsecond positions, enabling optical and infrared identifications of virtually all sources, as reported in a second companion paper (Civano et al. Paper III). The full catalog is described here in detail, and is available on-line.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2006

The XMM-Newton wide-field survey in the COSMOS field: V. Angular Clustering of the X-ray Point Sources

We present the first results of the measurements of angular auto-correlation functions (ACFs) of X-ray point sources detected in the XMM-Newton observations of the 2 deg2 COSMOS field (XMM-COSMOS). A significant positive signals have been detected in the 0.5-2 (SFT) band, in the angle range of 0.5-24 arcminutes, while the positive signals were at the 2 and 3 sigma levels in the 2-4.5 (MED) and 4.5-10 (UHD) keV bands respectively. Correctly taking integral constraints into account is a major limitation in interpreting our results. With power-law fits to the ACFs without the integral constraint term, we find correlation lengths of theta_c=1.9+-0.3, 0.8+0.5-0.4 and 6+-2 arcseconds for the SFT, MED, and UHD bands respectively for gamma=1.8. The inferred comoving correlation lengths, also taking into account the bias by the source merging due to XMM-Newton PSF, are 9.8+-0.7, 5.8+1.4-1.7 and 12+-2 h-1 Mpc at the effective redshifts of 1.1, 0.9, and 0.6 for the SFT, MED, and UHD bands respectively. If we include the integral constraint term in the fitting process,assuming that the power-law extends to the scale length of the entire XMM-COSMOSfield, the correlation lengths become larger by 20%-90%. Comparing the inferred rms fluctuations of the spatial distribution of AGNs with those of the underlying mass, the bias parameters of the X-ray source clustering at these effective redshifts are in the range b(AGN)=1.5-4. (Edited to simple ascii.)

astro-ph↗

arXiv2006

Chandra Observations of Six QSOs at z $\approx$ 3

We report the results of our Chandra observations of six QSOs at $z\sim 3$ from the Palomer Transit Grism Survey. Our primary goal is to investigate the possible systematic change of $α_{ox}$ between $z>4$ and $z\sim 3$, between which a rapid rise of luminous QSO number density with cosmic time is observed. The summed spectrum showed a power-law spectrum with photon index of $Γ\approx 1.9$, which is similar to other unabsorbed AGNs. Combining our $z\sim 3$ QSOs with X-ray observations of QSOs at $z>4$ from literaure/archive, we find a correlation of $α_{\rm ox}$ with optical luminosity. This is consistent with the fact that the luminosity function slope of the luminous end of the X-ray selected QSOs is steeper than that of optically-selected QSOs. We discuss an upper limit to the redshift dependence of $α_{ox}$ using a Monte-Carlo simulation. Within the current statistical errors including the derived limits on the redshift dependence of $α_{\rm ox}$, we found that the behaviors of the X-ray and optically-selected QSO number densities are consistent with each other.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2005

XMM-Newton view of the ultra-luminous X-ray sources in M51

(Abridged) We present results based on XMM-Newton observation of the nearby spiral galaxy M51 (NGC5194 and NGC5195). Two ULXs in NGC5194 show evidence for short-term variability, and all but two ULXs vary on long time scales (over a baseline of 2.5 years), providing strong evidence that these are accreting sources. One ULX in NGC5194, source 69, shows possible periodic behavior in its X-ray flux. We derive a period of 5925\pm200s at a confidence level of 95%, based on three cycles. This period is lower than the period of 7620\pm500s derived from a Chandra observation in 2000. The higher effective area of XMM-Newton enables us to identify multiple components in the spectra of ULXs. Most ULXs require at least two components -- a power law and a soft X-ray excess component which is modeled by an optically thin plasma or multicolor disk blackbody (MCD). However, the soft excess emission, inferred from all ULXs except source 69, are unlikely to be physically associated with the ULXs as their strengths are comparable to that of the surrounding diffuse emission. The soft excess emission of source 69 is well described either by a two temperature mekal plasma or a single temperature mekal plasma kT~690eV) and an MCD (kT~170eV). The MCD component suggests a cooler accretion disks compared to that in Galactic X-ray binaries and consistent with that expected for intermediate mass black holes (IMBHs). An iron line (EW 700eV) or K absorption edge at 7.1keV is present in the EPIC PN spectrum of source 26. The spectrum of the ULX in NGC5195, source 12, is consistent with a simple power law.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2004

X-ray Luminosity Functions of Active Galactic Nuclei

In this proceedings paper, I overview the current status of the X-ray luminosity function of AGNs in the soft (0.5-2 keV) band, extended using XMM-Newton and Chandra survey data. We found that the number density of low luminosity AGNs peaks later in the history of the universe (z~1) than the that of high luminosity AGNs (z~1.7-3). I also describe the basic results of a spectroscopic followup project of a complete HEAO-1 hard X-ray limited sample of AGNs using ASCA and XMM-Newton and present separate intrinsic hard X-ray luminosity functions for unabsorbed and absorbed AGNs. We found that the absorbed AGN XLF drops more rapidly at high luminosities, indicating a deficiency of absorbed luminous AGNs.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2004

Multiwavelength Properties of the X-ray Sources in the Groth-Westphal Strip Field

We summarize the multiwavelength properties of X-ray sources detected in the 80 ks XMM-Newton observation of the Groth-Westphal Strip. We find 23 XMM-Newton sources within the WFPC2 fields. Ten spectroscopic redshifts are available from the DEEP and CFRS projects and 4 of these show broad Mg II emission (type 1 AGNs). Two of those without any broad lines, nevertheless, have [NeV] emission which is an unambiguous signature of AGN activity, one of which is a narrow-line Seyfert 1 and the other a type 2 AGN. We have made near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopic observations using the Subaru OHS/CISCO spectrometer for five of the X-ray sources for which we found no indication of an AGN activity in the optical spectrum. We have detected H-alpha+[NII] emission in four of them. A broad H-alpha component and/or a large [NII]/H-alpha ratio is seen, suggestive of AGN activity. Nineteen sources have been detected in the Ks band and four of these are extremely red objects (I814-Ks>4). The optical counterparts for the majority of the X-ray sources are bulge-dominated with colors consistent with evolving elliptical galaxies, with starburst/AGN contamination. Assuming that the known local relations among the bulge luminosity,central velocity dispersion, and the mass of the central blackhole hold at about z=1, the AGN bolometric luminosity to Eddington luminosity ratio ranges from 0.3% to 10%. (abridged)

astro-ph↗

arXiv2003

Cosmological Evolution of the Hard X-ray AGN Luminosity Function and the Origin of the Hard X-ray Background

We investigate the cosmological evolution of the hard X-ray luminosity function (HXLF) of Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN) in the 2-10 keV luminosity range of 10^{41.5} - 10^{46.5} erg s^-1 as a function of redshift up to 3. From a combination of surveys conducted at photon energies above 2 keV with HEAO1, ASCA, and Chandra, we construct a highly complete (>96%) sample consisting of 247 AGNs over the wide flux range of 10^{-10} - 3.8*10^{-15} erg cm^-2 s^-1 (2-10 keV). For our purpose, we develop an extensive method of calculating the intrinsic (before-absorption) HXLF and the absorption (N_H) function. This utilizes the maximum likelihood method fully correcting for observational biases with consideration of the X-ray spectrum of each source. We find that (i) the fraction of X-ray absorbed AGNs decreases with the intrinsic luminosity and (ii) the evolution of the HXLF of all AGNs (including both type-I and type-II AGNs) is best described with a luminosity dependent density evolution (LDDE) where the cutoff redshift increases with the luminosity. Our results directly constrain the evolution of AGNs that produce a major part of the hard X-ray background, thus solving its origin quantitatively. A combination of the HXLF and the NH function enables us to construct a purely "observation based" population synthesis model. We present basic consequences of this model, and discuss the contribution of Compton-thick AGNs to the rest of the hard X-ray background.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2003

ASCA observation of Unusually X-ray Hard Radio Quiet QSO Kaz 102

We have observed a radio-quiet QSO Kaz 102 (z=0.136) with ASCA as a part of our program of complete spectral characterization of hard X-ray selected AGNs. We found that Kaz 102 shows unusual spectral properties. A simple power-law with absorption in our galaxy gave a satisfactory description of the spectrum. However, it showed a very hard photon index of Gamma=1.0 with no sign of deep absorption or a prominent spectral feature. We further explored the Compton reflection with Fe K-alpha line and warm absorber models for hardening the spectrum. Both gave statistically satisfactory fits. However, the Compton reflection model requires a very low metal abundance (0.03-0.07 in solar units).The warm absorber model with no direct component is preferred and gave a very high ionization parameter xi=200. If this is the case, the values of xi, warm absorber column density, and variability over about 10 years may suggest that the warm absorber resides in the broad-line region and crosses the line of sight to the central X-ray source.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2002

Faint Source Counts from the Off-source fluctuation Analysis on the Deepest Chandra Fields

We show the results of the fluctuation analysis applied to the off-source areas from the two 1 Million second Chandra Deep Fields, including our new results on the Chandra Deep Field-South (CDF-S) in the 0.5-2 keV band in addition to those on the Chandra Deep Field-North (CDF-N), which have already been reported. The distribution of the X-ray counts in cells has been compared with the expectation from the Log N - Log S model to constrain the behavior of the source number density down to a factor of several lower than the source-detection limit. We show that our results are insensitive to the non-uniformity of the non X-ray background (NXB). Our results show that the number counts in the soft band (0.5-2 [keV]) continue to grow down to Sx =7e-18 erg/s/cm2, possibly suggesting the emergence of a new population and they agree well with a prediction of star forming galaxies.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2002

Faint Source Counts from Off-source Fluctuation Analysis on Chandra Observations of the Hubble Deep Field-North

We report the results of fluctuation analysis of the off-source field from the 1 Million second Chandra observation of the Hubble Deep Field-North (HDF-N). The distribution of the counts in cells has been compared with the expectations from the Log N - Log S model to constrain the behavior of the source number density down to a factor of several lower than the source-detection limit. Our results show that the number counts in the soft band (0.5-2 [keV]) continue to grow down to Sx = 7e-18 [erg s^{-1} cm^{-2}], possibly suggesting the emergence of a new population and agree well with a prediction of star forming galaxies by Ptak et al. (2001). For the hard band (2-10 keV), the fluctuation analysis can loosely constrain the source counts fainter than the detection limit and we found an upper limit of 10000 [srcs deg^{-2}] at Sx=2e-16 [erg s^{-1}cm^{-2}].

astro-ph↗

arXiv2001

XMM-Newton Observation of a Distant X-ray Selected Cluster of Galaxies at z=1.26 with Possible Cluster Interaction

We report on the XMM-Newton (XMM) observation of RXJ1053.7+5735, one of the most distant (z = 1.26) X-ray selected clusters of galaxies, which also shows an unusual double-lobed X-ray morphology, indicative of possible cluster-cluster interaction. The cluster was discovered during our ROSAT deep pointings in the direction of the Lockman Hole. The XMM observations were performed with the European Photon Imaging Camera (EPIC) during the performance verification phase. Total effective exposure time was ~ 100 ksec. The best fit temperature based on a simultaneous fit of spectra from the all EPIC cameras is 4.9(+1.5/-0.9) keV. Metallicity is poorly constrained even using the joint fit of all spectra, with an upper limit on the iron abundance of 0.62 solar. Using the best fit model parameters, we derived a bolometric luminosity of L(bol) = 3.4x10^44 h_{50}^-2 erg /s. Despite the fact that it was observed at fairly large off-axis angle, the temperature errors are much smaller compared with those of typical measurements based on ASCA or Beppo-Sax observations of z > 0.6 clusters, demonstrating the power of the XMM for determining the X-ray temperature for high-z clusters. The measured temperature and luminosity show that one can easily reach the intrinsically X-ray faint and cool cluster regime comparable with those of z ~ 0.4 clusters observed by past satellites. The new cluster temperature and L(bol) we have measured for RXJ1053.7+5735 is consistent with a weak/no evolution of the L(bol) - Tx relation out to z ~ 1.3, which lends support to a low Omega universe, although more data-points of z > 1 clusters are required for a more definitive statement. The caution has to be also exercised in interpreting the result, because of the uncertainty associated with the dynamical status of this cluster.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2001

Multiple Components of the Luminous Compact X-ray Source at the Edge of Holmberg II observed by ASCA and ROSAT

We report the results of the analysis of ASCA/ROSAT observations of the compact luminous X-ray source found at the edge of the nearby star-forming dwarf galaxy Holmberg II (UGC 4305).Our ASCA spectrum revealed that the X-ray emission extends to the hard band and can be best described by a power-law with a photon spectral index of 1.9. The ASCA spectrum does not fit with a multi-color disk blackbody. The joint ASCA-ROSAT spectrum suggests two components to the spectrum: the hard power-law component and a warm thermal plasma kT~0.3[keV]. An additional absorption over that of our galaxy is required. The wobble correction of the ROSAT HRI image has clearly unveiled the existence of an extended component which amounts to 27+/-5% of the total X-ray emission. These observations indicate that there are more than one component in the X-ray emission. The properties of the point-like component is indicative of an accretion onto an intermediate mass blackhole, unless a beaming is taking place. We argue that the extended component does not come from electron scattering and/or reflection by scattered optically-thick clouds of the central radiation. Possible explanations of this X-ray source include multiple supernova remnants feeding an intermediate-mass blackhole. (abridged)

astro-ph↗

arXiv2001

Soft X-ray AGN Luminosity Function from ROSAT Surveys II. Table of the binned Soft X-ray Luminosity Function

This is the second paper of our investigation of the 0.5-2 keV soft X-ray luminosity function (SXLF) of active galactic nuclei (AGN) using results from ROSAT surveys of various depth. The large dynamic range of the combined sample, from shallow large-area ROSAT All-Sky Survey (RASS)-based samples to the satellite's deepest pointed observation on the Lockman Hole, enabled us to trace the behavior of the SXLF. While the first paper (Miyaji, Hasinger, Schmidt 2000, hereafter paper I) emphasized the global behavior of the SXLF, cosmological evolution and contribution to the soft X-ray background, this paper presents actual numerical values for practical use of our results. To present the binned SXLF, we have used an improved estimator, which is free from biases associated with the conventional 1/Va estimator.

astro-ph↗

arXiv1999

Soft X-ray AGN Luminosity Function from ROSAT Surveys I. Cosmological Evolution and Contribution to the Soft X-ray Background

We investigate the evolution of the 0.5-2 keV soft X-ray luminosity function (SXLF) of active galactic nuclei (AGN) using results from ROSAT surveys of various depth, ranging from shallow large-area ROSAT All-Sky Survey -based samples to the deepest pointed observation on the Lockman Hole. As previously found, the SXLF evolves rapidly as a function of redshift up to z\sim 1.5 and is consistent with remaining constant beyond this redshift. We found that a form of the Luminosity-Dependent Density Evolution (LDDE) gives an excellent fit to the data. Extrapolating one form of the LDDE model (LDDE1) explains \approx 60% of the estimated soft extragalactic Cosmic X-ray Background (CXRB). We have also found another representation (LDDE2), which produces \approx 90% of the CXRB and still gives an excellent fit to the sample AGNs. These two versions of the LDDE models can be considered two extremes of the possible extrapolations of the SXLF below the flux limit. We have also investigated the evolution of the number density of luminous QSOs. Unlike these QSOs, the ROSAT-selected QSOs do not show evidence for the decrease of the number density in z>3. The statistical significance of the difference is, however, marginal.

astro-ph↗