X-RAY-SELECTED ACTIVE GALACTIC NUCLEI WITH RED OPTICAL CONTINUA

We discuss the properties of X-ray-selected 'red' active galactic nucl ei (AGN) from the RIXOS sample. These are Seyfert 1 galaxies and quasa rs whose optical continua are relatively soft, i.e. with an energy ind ex, alpha(opt) > 2. There are 14 objects in the RIXOS sample that sati sfy this criterion and they cover a range in redshift from z = 0.08 to 1.27. Of these, two have characteristics that suggest that the contin uum is intrinsically red, i.e. an optical continuum which does not app ear to have been significantly reddened by dust or to have contaminati ng light from the host galaxy. A further three objects show evidence o f being absorbed by cold gas and dust with columns of up to similar to 10(22) Cm-2. Th, data are inconclusive on the remaining AGN.