Novel Analysis of the Multiwavelength Structure of Relativistic Jet in Quasar 3C 273

Abstract

We present a detailed analysis of the best-quality multi-wavelength data gathered for the large-scale jet in the core-dominated quasar 3C 273. We analyze all the archival observations of the target with the Chandra X-ray Observatory, the far-ultraviolet observations with the Hubble Space Telescope, and the 8.4 GHz map obtained with the Very Large Array. In our study we focus on investigating the morphology of the outflow at different frequencies, and therefore we apply various techniques for the image deconvolution, paying particular attention to a precise modeling of the Chandra and Hubble point spread functions. We find that the prominent brightness enhancements in the X-ray and far-ultraviolet jet of 3C 273 - the "knots" - are not point-like, and can be resolved transversely as extended features with sizes of about $\simeq 0.5$ kpc. Also, the radio outflow is wider than the deconvolved X-ray/ultraviolet jet. We have also found circumstantial evidence that the intensity peaks of the X-ray knots are located systematically upstream of the corresponding radio intensity peaks, with the projected spatial offsets along the jet ranging from $\lesssim 0.2$ kpc up to $\simeq 1$ kpc. We discuss our findings in the wider context of multi-component models for the emission and structure of large-scale quasar jets, and speculate on the physical processes enabling an efficient acceleration of the emitting ultra-relativistic electrons along the entire jet length that exceeds 100 kpc.

Accepted for publication in ApJ

References in corpus (10)

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• A microscopic analysis of shear acceleration
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• Confronting X-ray Emission Models with the Highest-Redshift Kiloparsec-scale Jets: the z=3.89 Jet in Quasar 1745+624

Cited by in corpus (10)

• Inverse-Compton scattering in the resolved jet of the high-redshift quasar PKS J1421-0643
• Offsets between X-ray and Radio Components in X-ray Jets: The AtlasX
• Chandra Imaging of the Western Hotspot in the Radio Galaxy Pictor A: Image Deconvolution and Variability Analysis
• Numerical Investigation of Dynamical and Morphological Trends in Relativistic Jets
• Pre-acceleration in the Electron Foreshock II: Oblique Whistler Waves
• X-Ray-to-Radio Offset Inference from Low-Count X-Ray Jets
• X-ray Spectral Analysis of the Jet Termination Shock in Pictor A on Sub-Arcsecond Scales with Chandra
• Arcsecond-Scale X-ray Imaging and Spectroscopy of SS 433 with Chandra HETG
• A Photo-Hadronic Model of the Large Scale Jets of 3C 273 and PKS 1136-135
• The resolved jet of 3C 273 at 150 MHz