Rare Occasions: Tidal Disruption Events Rarely Power the AGNs Observed in Dwarf Galaxies
Tidal disruption events (TDEs) could be an important growth channel for massive black holes in dwarf galaxies. Theoretical work suggests that the observed active galactic nuclei (AGNs) in dwarf galaxies are predominantly TDE-powered. To assess this claim, we perform variability analyses on the dwarf...
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2025-01-01
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ad8341 |
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| author | Joanne Tan Guang Yang Jonelle L. Walsh W. N. Brandt Bin Luo Franz E. Bauer Chien-Ting Chen Mouyuan Sun Yongquan Xue |
| author_facet | Joanne Tan Guang Yang Jonelle L. Walsh W. N. Brandt Bin Luo Franz E. Bauer Chien-Ting Chen Mouyuan Sun Yongquan Xue |
| author_sort | Joanne Tan |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Tidal disruption events (TDEs) could be an important growth channel for massive black holes in dwarf galaxies. Theoretical work suggests that the observed active galactic nuclei (AGNs) in dwarf galaxies are predominantly TDE-powered. To assess this claim, we perform variability analyses on the dwarf-hosted AGNs detected in the 7 Ms Chandra Deep Field-South survey, with observations spanning ≈16 yr. Based on the spectral energy distribution modeling with x-cigale , we select AGNs hosted by dwarf galaxies (stellar mass below 10 ^10 M _⊙ ). We focus on X-ray sources with full-band detections, leading to a sample of 78 AGNs (0.122 ≤ z ≤ 3.515). We fit the X-ray light curves with a canonical TDE model of t ^−5/3 and a constant model. If the former outperforms the latter in fitting quality for a source, we consider the source as a potential TDE. We identify five potential TDEs, constituting a small fraction of our sample. Using true- and false-positive rates obtained from fitting models to simulated light curves, we perform Bayesian analysis to obtain the posterior of the TDE fraction for our sample. The posterior peaks close to zero (2.56%), and we obtain a 2 σ upper limit of 9.80%. Therefore, our result indicates that the observed AGNs in dwarf galaxies are not predominantly powered by TDEs. |
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| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1538-4357 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
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| spelling | doaj-art-bda97525b9064093853f2506bf0085502025-01-31T06:47:16ZengIOP PublishingThe Astrophysical Journal1538-43572025-01-0198011310.3847/1538-4357/ad8341Rare Occasions: Tidal Disruption Events Rarely Power the AGNs Observed in Dwarf GalaxiesJoanne Tan0https://orcid.org/0009-0006-5896-2554Guang Yang1https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8835-7722Jonelle L. Walsh2https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1881-5908W. N. Brandt3https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0167-2453Bin Luo4https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9036-0063Franz E. Bauer5https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8686-8737Chien-Ting Chen6https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4945-5079Mouyuan Sun7https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0771-2153Yongquan Xue8https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1935-8104Max-Planck-Institut für Astrophysik , Karl-Schwarzschild-Straße 1, D-85748, Garching, Germany ; jtan@mpa-garching.mpg.de; Department of Physics and Astronomy, Texas A&M University , College Station, TX 77843-4242, USA ; gyang@niaot.ac.cn, gyang206265@gmail.com; George P. and Cynthia Woods Mitchell Institute for Fundamental Physics and Astronomy, Texas A&M University , College Station, TX 77843-4242, USADepartment of Physics and Astronomy, Texas A&M University , College Station, TX 77843-4242, USA ; gyang@niaot.ac.cn, gyang206265@gmail.com; George P. and Cynthia Woods Mitchell Institute for Fundamental Physics and Astronomy, Texas A&M University , College Station, TX 77843-4242, USA; Nanjing Institute of Astronomical Optics & Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences , Nanjing 210042, China; CAS Key Laboratory of Astronomical Optics & Technology, Nanjing Institute of Astronomical Optics & Technology , Nanjing 210042, China; Kapteyn Astronomical Institute, University of Groningen , P.O. Box 800, 9700 AV Groningen, The Netherlands; SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research , Postbus 800, 9700 AV Groningen, The NetherlandsDepartment of Physics and Astronomy, Texas A&M University , College Station, TX 77843-4242, USA ; gyang@niaot.ac.cn, gyang206265@gmail.com; George P. and Cynthia Woods Mitchell Institute for Fundamental Physics and Astronomy, Texas A&M University , College Station, TX 77843-4242, USADepartment of Astronomy and Astrophysics, The Pennsylvania State University , 525 Davey Lab, University Park, PA 16802, USA; Institute for Gravitation and the Cosmos, The Pennsylvania State University , University Park, PA 16802, USA; Department of Physics, The Pennsylvania State University , 104 Davey Laboratory, University Park, PA 16802, USASchool of Astronomy and Space Science, Nanjing University , Nanjing, Jiangsu 210046, ChinaInstituto de Astrofísica , Facultadde Física, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Casilla 306, Santiago 22, Chile; Millennium Institute of Astrophysics , Nuncio Monseñor Sótero Sanz 100, Providencia, Santiago, Chile; Space Science Institute , 4750 Walnut Street, Suite 205, Boulder, CO 80301, USAAstrophysics Office, NASA Marshall Space Flight Center , ZP12, Huntsville, AL 35812, USADepartment of Astronomy, Xiamen University , Xiamen, Fujian361005, ChinaCAS Key Laboratory for Research in Galaxies and Cosmology, Department of Astronomy, University of Science and Technology of China , Hefei 230026, China; School of Astronomy and Space Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China , Hefei 230026, ChinaTidal disruption events (TDEs) could be an important growth channel for massive black holes in dwarf galaxies. Theoretical work suggests that the observed active galactic nuclei (AGNs) in dwarf galaxies are predominantly TDE-powered. To assess this claim, we perform variability analyses on the dwarf-hosted AGNs detected in the 7 Ms Chandra Deep Field-South survey, with observations spanning ≈16 yr. Based on the spectral energy distribution modeling with x-cigale , we select AGNs hosted by dwarf galaxies (stellar mass below 10 ^10 M _⊙ ). We focus on X-ray sources with full-band detections, leading to a sample of 78 AGNs (0.122 ≤ z ≤ 3.515). We fit the X-ray light curves with a canonical TDE model of t ^−5/3 and a constant model. If the former outperforms the latter in fitting quality for a source, we consider the source as a potential TDE. We identify five potential TDEs, constituting a small fraction of our sample. Using true- and false-positive rates obtained from fitting models to simulated light curves, we perform Bayesian analysis to obtain the posterior of the TDE fraction for our sample. The posterior peaks close to zero (2.56%), and we obtain a 2 σ upper limit of 9.80%. Therefore, our result indicates that the observed AGNs in dwarf galaxies are not predominantly powered by TDEs.https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ad8341Tidal disruptionAGN host galaxiesDwarf galaxiesX-ray active galactic nuclei |
| spellingShingle | Joanne Tan Guang Yang Jonelle L. Walsh W. N. Brandt Bin Luo Franz E. Bauer Chien-Ting Chen Mouyuan Sun Yongquan Xue Rare Occasions: Tidal Disruption Events Rarely Power the AGNs Observed in Dwarf Galaxies The Astrophysical Journal Tidal disruption AGN host galaxies Dwarf galaxies X-ray active galactic nuclei |
| title | Rare Occasions: Tidal Disruption Events Rarely Power the AGNs Observed in Dwarf Galaxies |
| title_full | Rare Occasions: Tidal Disruption Events Rarely Power the AGNs Observed in Dwarf Galaxies |
| title_fullStr | Rare Occasions: Tidal Disruption Events Rarely Power the AGNs Observed in Dwarf Galaxies |
| title_full_unstemmed | Rare Occasions: Tidal Disruption Events Rarely Power the AGNs Observed in Dwarf Galaxies |
| title_short | Rare Occasions: Tidal Disruption Events Rarely Power the AGNs Observed in Dwarf Galaxies |
| title_sort | rare occasions tidal disruption events rarely power the agns observed in dwarf galaxies |
| topic | Tidal disruption AGN host galaxies Dwarf galaxies X-ray active galactic nuclei |
| url | https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ad8341 |
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