Intranight Optical Variability of Radio-Quiet Weak Emission Line Quasars

Abstract

Based on a recently started programme, we report the first search for intranight optical variability among radio-quiet weak-line-quasars (RQWLQs). Eight members of this class were observed on 13 nights in the R-band, such that each source was monitored continuously at least once for a minimum duration of about 3.5 hours, using the recently installed 130 cm telescope at Devasthal, India. Statistical analysis of the differential light curves was carried out using two versions of the F-test. Based on the INOV data acquired so far, the radio-quiet WLQ population appears to exhibit stronger INOV activity as compared to the general population of radio-quiet quasars (RQQs), but similar to the INOV known for radio-loud quasars of non-blazar type. To improve upon this early result, as well as extend the comparison to blazars, a factor of ?2 improvement in the INOV detection threshold would be needed. Such efforts are underway, motivated by the objective to search for the elusive radio-quiet blazars using INOV observations.

8 pages, 1 figure, 3 tables; accepted for publication in MNRAS

References in corpus (8)

• A Catalog of Quasar Properties from SDSS DR7
• The Sloan Digital Sky Survey Quasar Catalog IV. Fifth Data Release
• The Radio-Loud Fraction of Quasars is a Strong Function of Redshift and Optical Luminosity
• Chandra Observations of the Highest Redshift Quasars from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey
• A Large, Uniform Sample of X-ray Emitting AGN from the ROSAT All-Sky and Sloan Digital Sky Surveys: the Data Release 5 Sample
• Intra-night Optical Variability of Luminous Radio Quiet QSOs
• Intra-night optical variability of core dominated radio quasars: the role of optical polarization
• Hubble Space Telescope Ultraviolet Spectroscopy of Fourteen Low-Redshift Quasars

Cited by in corpus (9)

• Intra-night optical variability characteristics of different classes of narrow line Seyfert 1 galaxies
• Intranight Optical Variability of Radio-Quiet Weak Emission Line Quasars-III
• The impact of a young radio galaxy: clues from the cosmic-ray electron population
• Intranight Optical Variability of Radio-Quiet Weak Emission Line Quasars-II
• Intranight Optical Variability of Radio-Quiet Weak Emission Line Quasars-IV
• Super-Eddington accretion in the Q2237+0305 quasar?
• Evidence of under-developed torus and broad-line region of weak emission line quasars based on their spectral energy distribution
• Polarimetric and spectroscopic study of radio-quiet weak emission line quasars
• Intranight optical variability of radio-quiet BL Lacertae objects