Double-peaked profiles: ubiquitous signatures of disks in the Broad Emission Lines of Active Galactic Nuclei

Abstract

Broad (~10,000 km/s), double-peaked emission-line profiles of Balmer lines emitted by active galactic nuclei (AGN) are thought to originate in the outer parts of an accretion disk surrounding a nuclear supermassive black hole (SMBH), at R~1000 gravitational radii and are most frequently observed in the nuclear spectra of low-luminosity AGN (LLAGN) and radio-galaxies. In the present paper we argue that broad double-peaked profiles are present also in the spectra of other Type 1 AGN, such as Seyfert 1 galaxies, suggesting that the inner part of the broad-line region (BLR) is also the outer part of the accretion disk. We use the Palomar spectral survey of nearby galaxies to show that the only difference between Seyfert 1 BLR line profiles and "bona fide" double peakers is that, in most cases, besides a disk component, we need an additional Gaussian component attributed to non-disk clouds. The recognition that the inner and most variable part of the BLR has a disk geometry suggests that the factor 'f ' in the expression to obtain the SMBH mass (M) in Type 1 AGN M(SMBH)=f [R(BLR) (Delta V)^2]/G is f = 1/[sin^2(i)] for the disk dominated sources. Our median inclination i=27 degrees implies f=4.5, very close to the most recent value of f=4.3+/-1.05, obtained from independent studies. We derive a relation between f and the FWHM of the broad profile that may help to reduce the uncertainties in the SMBH mass determinations of AGN.

References in corpus (53)

• X-ray Properties of Black-Hole Binaries
• The Man Behind the Curtain: X-rays Drive the UV through NIR Variability in the 2013 AGN Outburst in NGC 2617
• Central Masses and Broad-Line Region Sizes of Active Galactic Nuclei. II. A Homogeneous Analysis of a Large Reverberation-Mapping Database
• A Search for "Dwarf" Seyfert Nuclei. III. Spectroscopic Parameters and Properties of the Host Galaxies
• Nuclear Activity in Nearby Galaxies
• The Low-Luminosity End of the Radius-Luminosity Relationship for Active Galactic Nuclei
• The Relationship Between Luminosity and Broad-Line Region Size in Active Galactic Nuclei
• Central Masses and Broad-Line Region Sizes of Active Galactic Nuclei: I. Comparing the Photoionization and Reverberation Techniques
• Advection-Dominated Accretion and the Black Hole Event Horizon
• Systematic Effects in Measurement of Black Hole Masses by Emission-Line Reverberation of Active Galactic Nuclei: Eddington Ratio and Inclination
• The Lick AGN Monitoring Project: Broad-Line Region Radii and Black Hole Masses from Reverberation Mapping of Hbeta
• A Search for "Dwarf" Seyfert Nuclei. IV. Nuclei with Broad H-alpha Emission
• Reverberation Mapping Measurements of Black Hole Masses in Six Local Seyfert Galaxies
• Modeling reverberation mapping data II: dynamical modeling of the Lick AGN Monitoring Project 2008 dataset
• Completion of a Survey and Detailed Study of Double-Peaked Emission Lines in Radio-Loud AGNs
• Double-Peaked Low-Ionization Emission Lines in Active Galactic Nuclei
• Stellar Velocity Dispersion Measurements in High-Luminosity Quasar Hosts and Implications for the AGN Black Hole Mass Scale
• Reverberation Mapping Results for Five Seyfert 1 Galaxies
• The Star-Forming Torus and Stellar Dynamical Black Hole Mass in the Seyfert 1 Nucleus of NGC3227
• A Reverberation-Based Mass for the Central Black Hole in NGC 4151
• The Lick AGN Monitoring Project: Reverberation Mapping of Optical Hydrogen and Helium Recombination Lines
• Steps Toward Determination of the Size and Structure of the Broad-Line Region in Active Galactic Nuclei. XVI. A Thirteen-Year Study of Spectral Variability in NGC 5548
• The Structure of the Broad Line Region in AGN: I. Reconstructed Velocity-Delay Maps
• On the Unification of Active Galactic Nuclei
• Evolution of Broad-line Emission from Active Galactic Nuclei
• Evolution of the Nuclear Accretion Disk Emission in NGC 1097: Getting Closer to the Black Hole
• The Profiles of H-Beta and [OIII] 5007 in Radio-Loud Quasars
• Modeling reverberation mapping data I: improved geometric and dynamical models and comparison with cross-correlation results
• Contribution of the Disk Emission to the Broad Emission Lines in AGNs: Two-component model
• Double-Peaked Broad Emission Lines in NGC 4450 and Other LINERs
• Radiatively Inefficient Accretion Flow in the Nucleus of NGC 1097
• Steps toward Determination of the Size and Structure of the Broad-Line Region in Active Galactic Nuclei. XII. Ground-Based Monitoring of 3C 390.3
• Low-Luminosity Accretion in Black Hole X-ray Binaries and Active Galactic Nuclei
• Long-Term Profile Variability of Double Peaked Emission Lines in Active Galactic Nuclei
• Circumnuclear Gas in Seyfert 1 Galaxies: Morphology, Kinematics, and Direct Measurement of Black Hole Masses
• Multiwavelength observations of short time-scale variability in NGC 4151. II. Optical observations
• NGC 5548 in a Low-Luminosity State: Implications for the Broad-Line Region
• Steps toward determination of the size and structure of the broad-line region in active galactic nuclei. VI. Variability of NGC 3783 from ground-based data
• Long-Term Profile Variability in Active Galactic Nuclei with Double-Peaked Balmer Emission Lines
• Evidence for a Black Hole and Accretion Disk in the LINER NGC 4203
• A Reverberation Lag for the High-Ionization Component of the Broad Line Region in the Narrow-Line Seyfert 1 Mrk 335
• NGC 3065: A Certified LINER With Broad, Variable Balmer Lines
• The Broad-Line and Narrow-Line Regions of the LINER NGC 4579
• Optical Monitoring of the Broad-Line Radio Galaxy 3C390.3
• Contribution of a Disk Component to Single Peaked Broad Lines of Active Galactic Nuclei
• Spectral optical monitoring of 3C390.3 in 1995-2007: I. Light curves and flux variation of the continuum and broad lines
• BLR kinematics and Black Hole Mass in Markarian 6
• Variability of the H-beta line profiles as an indicator of orbiting bright spots in accretion disks of quasars: a case study of 3C 390.3
• Spectral optical monitoring of 3C 390.3 in 1995-2007: II. Variability of the spectral line parameters
• Balmer Emission Line Profiles and the Complex Properties of Broad Line Regions in Active Galactic Nuclei
• Short timescale variations of the Hα double-peaked profile of the nucleus of NGC 1097
• Short-Timescale monitoring of the X-ray, UV and broad double-peak emission line of the nucleus of NGC 1097
• Kinematics and Structure of Clumps in Broad-line Regions in Active Galactic Nuclei

Cited by in corpus (67)

• The Quest for Dual and Binary Supermassive Black Holes: A Multi-Messenger View
• Observational Constraints on the Feeding of Supermassive Black Holes
• PS18kh: A New Tidal Disruption Event with a Non-Axisymmetric Accretion Disk
• Velocity-resolved reverberation mapping of five bright Seyfert 1 galaxies
• The spatially resolved broad line region of IRAS 09149-6206
• Monitoring AGNs with Hβ Asymmetry. I. First Results: Velocity-resolved Reverberation Mapping
• Space Telescope and Optical Reverberation Mapping Project. IX. Velocity-Delay Maps for Broad Emission Lines in NGC 5548
• BASS XXV: DR2 Broad-line Based Black Hole Mass Estimates and Biases from Obscuration
• Can reverberation-measured quasars be used for cosmology?
• Spectropolarimetry of Seyfert 1 galaxies with equatorial scattering: Black hole masses and Broad Line Region characteristics
• LLAMA: The $M_{BH}$ - ${\sigma }_{\star }$ Relation of the most luminous local AGNs
• Gas Kinematics in FIRE Simulated Galaxies Compared to Spatially Unresolved HI Observations
• Little red dots as young supermassive black holes in dense ionized cocoons
• Stratified disc wind models for the AGN broad-line region: ultraviolet, optical and X-ray properties
• An elliptical accretion disk following the tidal disruption event AT 2020zso
• HST unveils a compact mildly relativistic Broad Line Region in the candidate true type 2 NGC 3147
• AT 2019avd: A novel addition to the diverse population of nuclear transients
• Radio-loudness along the quasar main sequence
• Optical spectroscopy of local type-1 AGN LINERs
• Black hole mass estimates in quasars - A comparative analysis of high- and low-ionization lines
• Reverberation Mapping of Changing-look Active Galactic Nucleus NGC 3516
• Velocity-resolved Reverberation Mapping of Changing-look AGN NGC 2617
• Evidence for Two Distinct Broad-Line Regions from Reverberation Mapping of PG 0026+129
• The first spectroscopic dust reverberation programme on active galactic nuclei: the torus in NGC 5548
• A flare in the optical spotted in the changing-look Seyfert NGC 3516
• Broad-line region structure and line profile variations in the changing look AGN HE1136-2304
• Reverberation Mapping of IC4329A
• Kinematic signatures of reverberation mapping of close binaries of supermassive black holes in active galactic nuclei
• Exploring the Diversity of Type 1 Active Galactic Nuclei Identified in SDSS-IV/SPIDERS
• Evolution of quasar stochastic variability along its main sequence
• Evolution of the accretion disk around the supermassive black hole of NGC 7213
• Measuring black hole masses from tidal disruption events and testing the $M_{\mathrm{BH}}-{\sigma }_{\ast }$ relation
• The reverberation signatures of rotating disc winds in active galactic nuclei
• Modelling the AGN broad line region using single-epoch spectra II. Nearby AGN
• Dependence of NLRs sizes on [OIII] luminosity in low redshift AGN with double-peaked broad Balmer emission lines
• Kinematic signatures of reverberation mapping of close binaries of supermassive black holes in active galactic nuclei III. The case of elliptical orbits
• Velocity-resolved Reverberation Mapping of Changing-look Active Galactic Nucleus NGC 4151 during Outburst Stage. II. Four Season Observation Results
• RADs energetics and constraints on emerging tori collisions around super-massive Kerr Black Holes
• AGN STORM 2: II. Ultraviolet Observations of Mrk817 with the Cosmic Origins Spectrograph on the Hubble Space Telescope
• Relating Kerr SMBHs in Active Galactic Nuclei to RAD configurations
• A search for ionised gas outflows in an Halpha imaging atlas of nearby LINERs
• Influence of toroidal magnetic field in multi-accreting tori
• Gemini IFU, VLA and HST observations of the OH Megamaser galaxy IRASF23199+0123: the hidden monster and its outflow
• Probing the disk-corona systems and broad line regions of changing-look quasars with X-ray and optical observations
• Modelling the AGN broad line region using single-epoch spectra I. The test case of Arp 151
• Spiral Arms in Broad-line Regions of Active Galactic Nuclei. I. Reverberation and Differential Interferometric Signals of Tightly Wound Cases
• Spiral Arms in Broad-line Regions of Active Galactic Nuclei. II. Loosely Wound Cases: Reverberation Properties
• SDSS J154751.94+025550 with double-peaked broad Hβbut single-peaked broad Hα: a candidate for central binary black hole system?
• ESPRESSO reveals a single but perturbed broad-line region in the supermassive black hole binary candidate PG 1302-102
• First observation of double-peaked O I emission in the near-infrared spectrum of an active galaxy
• Detection of a double-peaked H$\alpha$ component from the accretion disc of NGC 4958
• Limiting effects in clusters of misaligned toroids orbiting static SMBHs
• B3\,0749+460A: A New "Changing-Look" Active Galactic Nucleus Associated with X-ray Spectral Slope Variations
• A fast test for the identification and confirmation of massive black hole binaries
• NGC 3147: a prototypical low-luminosity active galactic nucleus with double-peaked optical and ultraviolet lines
• Spectral variability of the 3C 390.3 nucleus for more than 20 years -- II. Variability of the broad emission-line profiles and He II $\lambda 4686$A emission-line fluxes
• Spectroscopic AGN survey at $z$ $\sim$ 2 with NTT/SOFI for GRAVITY+ observations
• Broadband spectral and temporal study of Ton 599 during the brightest January 2023 flare
• Testing compact massive black hole binary candidates through multi-epoch spectroscopy
• Discovery of a Quasar with Double-Peaked Broad Balmer Emission Lines
• The Great Slump: Mrk926 reveals discrete and varying Balmer line satellite components during a drastic phase of decline
• The Quasar 3C 47: Extreme Population B Jetted Source With Double-peaked Profile
• Double-peaked Ca II traces a relativistic broad-line region disk in NGC 4593
• Association of Optical, Ultraviolet and Soft X-ray excess Emissions in AGNs
• Searching for supermassive black holes binaries within SRG/eROSITA-De I: Properties of the X-ray selected candidates
• Can a time evolving, asymmetric broad line region mimic a massive black hole binary?
• A Hydrodynamical Thermal Irradiated Wind from the Outer Thin Accretion Disk in Low-luminosity Active Galactic Nuclei