A study of high-redshift AGN feedback in SZ cluster samples

We present a study of active galactic nucleus (AGN) feedback at higher redshifts (0.3 < z < 1.2) using Sunyaev-Zel'dovich selected samples of clusters from the South Pole Telescope and Atacama Cosmology Telescope surveys. In contrast to studies of nearby systems, we do not find a...

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Main Authors: Bîrzan, L., Rafferty, D., Brüggen, M., Intema, Hubertus
Format: Journal Article
Published: Oxford University Press 2017
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/74450
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author Bîrzan, L.
Rafferty, D.
Brüggen, M.
Intema, Hubertus
author_facet Bîrzan, L.
Rafferty, D.
Brüggen, M.
Intema, Hubertus
author_sort Bîrzan, L.
building Curtin Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description We present a study of active galactic nucleus (AGN) feedback at higher redshifts (0.3 < z < 1.2) using Sunyaev-Zel'dovich selected samples of clusters from the South Pole Telescope and Atacama Cosmology Telescope surveys. In contrast to studies of nearby systems, we do not find a separation between cooling flow (CF) clusters and non-CF clusters based on the radio luminosity of the central radio source (cRS). This lack may be due to the increased incidence of galaxy-galaxy mergers at higher redshift that triggers AGN activity. In support of this scenario, we find evidence for evolution in the radio-luminosity function of the cRS, while the lower luminosity sources do not evolve much, the higher luminosity sources show a strong increase in the frequency of their occurrence at higher redshifts. We interpret this evolution as an increase in high-excitation radio galaxies (HERGs) in massive clusters at z > 0.6, implying a transition from HERG-mode accretion to lower power low-excitation radio galaxy (LERG)-mode accretion at intermediate redshifts. Additionally, we use local radio-to-jet power scaling relations to estimate feedback power and find that half of the CF systems in our sample probably have enough heating to balance cooling. However, we postulate that the local relations are likely not well suited to predict feedback power in high-luminosity HERGs, as they are derived from samples composed mainly of lower luminosity LERGs.
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spelling curtin-20.500.11937-744502019-03-13T01:56:21Z A study of high-redshift AGN feedback in SZ cluster samples Bîrzan, L. Rafferty, D. Brüggen, M. Intema, Hubertus We present a study of active galactic nucleus (AGN) feedback at higher redshifts (0.3 < z < 1.2) using Sunyaev-Zel'dovich selected samples of clusters from the South Pole Telescope and Atacama Cosmology Telescope surveys. In contrast to studies of nearby systems, we do not find a separation between cooling flow (CF) clusters and non-CF clusters based on the radio luminosity of the central radio source (cRS). This lack may be due to the increased incidence of galaxy-galaxy mergers at higher redshift that triggers AGN activity. In support of this scenario, we find evidence for evolution in the radio-luminosity function of the cRS, while the lower luminosity sources do not evolve much, the higher luminosity sources show a strong increase in the frequency of their occurrence at higher redshifts. We interpret this evolution as an increase in high-excitation radio galaxies (HERGs) in massive clusters at z > 0.6, implying a transition from HERG-mode accretion to lower power low-excitation radio galaxy (LERG)-mode accretion at intermediate redshifts. Additionally, we use local radio-to-jet power scaling relations to estimate feedback power and find that half of the CF systems in our sample probably have enough heating to balance cooling. However, we postulate that the local relations are likely not well suited to predict feedback power in high-luminosity HERGs, as they are derived from samples composed mainly of lower luminosity LERGs. 2017 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/74450 10.1093/MNRAS/STX1505 Oxford University Press fulltext
spellingShingle Bîrzan, L.
Rafferty, D.
Brüggen, M.
Intema, Hubertus
A study of high-redshift AGN feedback in SZ cluster samples
title A study of high-redshift AGN feedback in SZ cluster samples
title_full A study of high-redshift AGN feedback in SZ cluster samples
title_fullStr A study of high-redshift AGN feedback in SZ cluster samples
title_full_unstemmed A study of high-redshift AGN feedback in SZ cluster samples
title_short A study of high-redshift AGN feedback in SZ cluster samples
title_sort study of high-redshift agn feedback in sz cluster samples
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/74450