Physics
Scientific paper
Jun 2009
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2009phdt.........4m&link_type=abstract
Proquest Dissertations And Theses 2009. Section 0098, Part 0606 313 pages; [Ph.D. dissertation].United States -- Maryland: The
Physics
Active Galactic Nuclei, Black Holes, Supermassive Black Holes
Scientific paper
The complexity of the structure and behavior of AGNs is often imprinted in the Fe K line emission in their X-ray spectra. We present a study of the Seyfert galaxy NGC 2992 with RXTE and Suzaku , which highlights this complexity, as we find evidence of both persistent emission from the accretion disk and from matter more distant from the central black hole (i.e., the putative obscuring torus), as well as short-term flaring emission from the accretion disk. Future X-ray instrumentation is expected to allow us to significantly improve the constraints derived from the Fe K lines in AGN, such as the black-hole angular momentum (spin) and the inclination angle of the putative accretion disk. However, significant model-dependence and degeneracy will persist with radially-integrated Fe K line profiles, so we have investigated the feasibility of utilizing Fe K line emission from localized orbiting flares ("hotspots") to provide a more robust measure of black-hole spin. In addition to affecting the persistent and transient Fe K line emission, the physical structure, geometry, and orientation of the central engine harboring the black hole furthermore effect the observed continuum in specific ways. It is therefore necessary to self-consistently model the continuum and emission lines in order to derive constraints on the physical parameters of the system. Improved X-ray spectral data quality has facilitated the ability to disentangle some of the spectral components, but the increased spectral complexity creates a need for more sophisticated models. Such a need has arisen with respect to the X-ray spectra of obscured AGN. To that end, we describe a new X-ray spectral model, based on Monte-Carlo simulations of the toroidal reprocessor, that will allow one to self-consistently fit for the line emission from distant matter as well as the associated Compton-scattered continuum. The model is valid for arbitrary incident spectra and can therefore be combined with models of relativistic broadening and reflection components of the disk emission to comprehensively fit the broadband spectra of AGN.
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