Cosmological luminosity evolution of the QSO active Galactic nucleus population

Citation
Yy. Choi et al., Cosmological luminosity evolution of the QSO active Galactic nucleus population, ASTROPHYS J, 518(2), 1999, pp. L77-L81
Citations number
30
Categorie Soggetti
Space Sciences
Journal title
ASTROPHYSICAL JOURNAL
ISSN journal
0004637X → ACNP
Volume
518
Issue
2
Year of publication
1999
Part
2
Pages
L77 - L81
Database
ISI
SICI code
0004-637X(19990620)518:2<L77:CLEOTQ>2.0.ZU;2-S
Abstract
We apply the observed optical/X-ray spectral states of the Galactic black h ole candidates (GBHCs) to the cosmological QSO luminosity evolution under t he assumptions that QSOs and GBHCs are powered by similar accretion process es and that their emission mechanisms are also similar. The QSO luminosity function (LF) evolution in various energy bands is strongly affected by the spectral evolution, which is tightly correlated with the luminosity evolut ion. We generate a random sample of QSOs born nearly synchronously by allow ing the QSOs to have redshifts in a narrow range around an initial high red shift, black hole masses according to a power law, and mass accretion rates near Eddington rates. The QSOs evolve as a single long-lived population on the cosmological timescale. The pure luminosity evolution results in disti nct luminosity evolution features caused by the strong spectral evolution. Most notably, different energy bands (optical/UV, soft X-ray, and hard X-ra y) show different evolutionary trends, and the hard X-ray LF in particular shows an apparent reversal of the luminosity evolution (from decreasing to increasing luminosity) at low redshifts, which is not seen in the conventio nal pure luminosity evolution scenario without spectral evolution. The resu lting mass function of black holes (BHs), which is qualitatively consistent with the observed QSO LF evolution, shows that QSO remnants are likely to be found as BHs with masses in the range 10(8)-5 x 10(10) M.. The long-live d single population of QSOs are expected to leave their remnants as superma ssive BHs residing in rare, giant elliptical galaxies.