High-redshift galaxies, their active nuclei and central black holes

We demonstrate that the luminosity function of the recently detected population of actively star-forming galaxies at redshift z  = 3 and the B -band luminosity function of quasi-stellar objects (QSOs) at the same redshift can both be matched with the mass function of dark matter haloes predicted by standard variants of hierarchical cosmogonies for lifetimes of optically bright QSOs anywhere in the range 10⁶ to 10⁸ yr. There is a strong correlation between the lifetime and the required degree of non-linearity in the relation between black hole and halo mass. We suggest that the mass of supermassive black holes may be limited by the back-reaction of the emitted energy on the accretion flow in a self-gravitating disc. This would imply a relation of black hole to halo mass of the form M _bh ∝  v ⁵_halo ∝  M ^5/3_halo and a typical duration of the optically bright QSO phase of a few times 10⁷ yr. The high integrated mass density of black holes inferred from recent black hole mass estimates in nearby galaxies may indicate that the overall efficiency of supermassive black holes for producing blue light is smaller than previously assumed. We discuss three possible accretion modes with low optical emission efficiency: (i) accretion at far above the Eddington rate, (ii) accretion obscured by dust, and (iii) accretion below the critical rate leading to an advection-dominated accretion flow lasting for a Hubble time. We further argue that accretion with low optical efficiency might be closely related to the origin of the hard X-ray background and that the ionizing background might be progressively dominated by stars rather than QSOs at higher redshift.     

Gravitational and doppler redshifts of quasars interpreted as massive black holes ejected from galaxies

This is a first attempt to find a realistic explanation of the observed redshifts of quasars associated with galaxies, by considering, in addition to the inertial, also the gravitational time dilation in the strong field of quasars interpreted as huge black holes accreting matter from their surroundings. This interpretation allows us to understand the observed predominance of excess redshifts of quasars and construct possible semiquantitative models for the pair NGC 4319/Markarian 205. The proposed models do not contradict to the present astrophysical knowledge, but a selection of the most satisfactory one is still difficult because of the existing uncertainty in estimates of the sizes of radiating regions in matter accreted by a flying black hole.Essay received 2 March, 1979 by the Gravity Research Foundation (Gloucester, Mass., U.S.A.) and selected for Honorable Mention for 1979.     

The distribution of supermassive black holes in the nuclei of nearby galaxies

The growth of supermassive black holes by merging and accretion in hierarchical models of galaxy formation is studied by means of Monte Carlo simulations. A tight linear relation between masses of black holes and masses of bulges arises if the mass accreted by supermassive black holes scales linearly with the mass-forming stars and if the redshift evolution of mass accretion tracks closely that of star formation. Differences in redshift evolution between black hole accretion and star formation introduce a considerable scatter in this relation. A non-linear relation between black hole accretion and star formation results in a non-linear relation between masses of remnant black holes and masses of bulges. The relation of black hole mass to bulge luminosity observed in nearby galaxies and its scatter are reproduced reasonably well by models in which black hole accretion and star formation are linearly related but do not track each other in redshift. This suggests that a common mechanism determines the efficiency for black hole accretion and the efficiency for star formation, especially for bright bulges.     

Modelling the cosmological co-evolution of supermassive black holes and galaxies – II. The clustering of quasars and their dark environment

We use semi-analytic modelling on top of the Millennium simulation to study the joint formation of galaxies and their embedded supermassive black holes. Our goal is to test scenarios in which black hole accretion and quasar activity are triggered by galaxy mergers, and to constrain different models for the light curves associated with individual quasar events. In the present work, we focus on studying the spatial distribution of simulated quasars. At all luminosities, we find that the simulated quasar two-point correlation function is fit well by a single power law in the range  0.5 ≲ r ≲ 20  h ⁻¹ Mpc  , but its normalization is a strong function of redshift. When we select only quasars with luminosities within the range typically accessible by today's quasar surveys, their clustering strength depends only weakly on luminosity, in agreement with observations. This holds independently of the assumed light-curve model, since bright quasars are black holes accreting close to the Eddington limit, and are hosted by dark matter haloes with a narrow mass range of a few  10¹²  h ⁻¹ M_⊙  . Therefore, the clustering of bright quasars cannot be used to disentangle light-curve models, but such a discrimination would become possible if the observational samples can be pushed to significantly fainter limits. Overall, our clustering results for the simulated quasar population agree rather well with observations, lending support to the conjecture that galaxy mergers could be the main physical process responsible for triggering black hole accretion and quasar activity.     

The interaction of the stars with accretion disk around the massive black hole in the nuclei of active galaxies and quasars

We consider a passage of the stars through the accretion disk near the supermassive black hole in the nuclei of active galaxies and quasars. When a star penetrates the disk, a hydrodynamical track is formed behind it. The boundary of the track is a cylindric shock-wave. The region of the track is optically thick with respect to the true absorption. The transfer of the energy dissipated by the passage of the star with a radius ≈10¹² cm (the typical dimensions of a star in a galactic nucleus) across the disk provided by the radiative heat conduction. Each star passage through the intermediate region of the disk results in the appearance of a bright spot on its surface. The energy emitted by the spots lies inside the frequency range from visible to UV, exceeding the disk luminosity due to accretion in the range considered.     

Migration of supermassive black holes in galactic nuclei

The migration of central black holes in galactic nuclei through their encounters with galactic globular clusters is studied. The black hole moves in the field of the galactic bulge with a fixed potential. The dependences of the black-hole drift amplitude on orbital parameters of the globular cluster, its mass, and bulge parameters have been found. The drift amplitude of the central black hole can reach several parsecs in our Galaxy and several tens of parsecs in early-type (Sa) and late-type (Sc) spiral galaxies.     

Radiative feedback from quasars and the growth of massive black holes in stellar spheroids

We discuss the importance of feedback via photoionization and Compton heating on the co-evolution of massive black holes (MBHs) at the centre of spheroidal galaxies, and their stellar and gaseous components. We first assess the energetics of the radiative feedback from a typical quasar on the ambient interstellar medium (ISM). We then demonstrate that the observed   M _BH–σ  relation could be established following the conversion of most of the gas of an elliptical progenitor into stars, specifically when the gas-to-stars mass ratio in the central regions has dropped to a low level  ∼0.01  or less, so that gas cooling is no longer able to keep up with the radiative heating by the growing central massive black hole (MBH). A considerable amount of the remaining gas will be expelled and both MBH accretion and star formation will proceed at significantly reduced rates thereafter, in agreement with observations of present-day ellipticals. We find further support for this scenario by evolving over an equivalent Hubble time a simple, physically based toy model that additionally takes into account the mass and energy return for the spheroid evolving stellar population, a physical ingredient often neglected in similar approaches.     

Formation and evolution of galactic nuclei, black holes

The formation and evolution of galactic nuclei is discussed, mainly from the viewpoint of the dense gaseous and stellar system in the central portions of young galactic nuclei. A review is given on models of galactic nuclei containing one or more black holes and how the standard historic Rees-Spitzer-Stone scenario of isolated nuclei formation has been changed by the cosmological structure formation scenario. The dynamical interaction of two or more black holes with their stellar environment and their merging possibilities is presented. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Supermassive black holes, star formation and downsizing of elliptical galaxies

The overabundance of Mg relative to Fe, observed in the nuclei of bright ellipticals, and its increase with galactic mass, poses a serious problem for all current models of galaxy formation. Here, we improve on the one-zone chemical evolution models for elliptical galaxies by taking into account positive feedback produced in the early stages of supermassive central black hole growth. We can account for both the observed correlation and the scatter if the observed anti-hierarchical behaviour of the AGN population couples to galaxy assembly and results in an enhancement of the star formation efficiency which is proportional to galactic mass. At low and intermediate galactic masses, however, a slower mode for star formation suffices to account for the observational properties.     

The masses of black holes in the nuclei of spirals

We use the innermost kinematics of spirals to investigate whether these galaxies could host the massive black hole remnants that once powered the quasi-stellar object (QSO) phenomenon. Hundreds of rotation curves of early- and late-type spirals are used to place upper limits on the central black hole (BH) masses. We find that (i) in late-type spirals, the central massive dark objects (MDOs) are about 10–100 times smaller than the MDOs detected in ellipticals, and (ii) in early-type spirals, the central bodies are likely to be in the same mass range as the elliptical MDOs. As a consequence, the contribution to the QSO/active galactic nuclei (AGN) phenomenon by the BH remnants eventually hosted in spirals is negligible: ρ _BH(Sb–Im)<6×10⁴ M_⊙ Mpc⁻³ . We find several hints that the MDO mass versus bulge mass relationship is significantly steeper in spirals than in ellipticals, although the very issue of the existence of such a relation for late Hubble type objects remains open. The upper limits on the masses of the BHs resident in late-type spirals are stringent: M _BH10⁶–10⁷ M_⊙, indicating that only low-luminosity activity could possibly have occurred in these objects .