Compact Molecular Gas Distribution in Quasar Host Galaxies

Abstract

We use Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array CO(2-1) observations of six low-redshift Palomar-Green quasars to study the distribution and kinematics of the molecular gas of their host galaxies at kpc-scale resolution. While the molecular gas content, molecular gas fraction, and star formation rates are similar to those of nearby massive, star-forming galaxies, the quasar host galaxies possess exceptionally compact, disky molecular gas distributions with a median half-light radius of 1.8 kpc and molecular gas mass surface densities $\gtrsim 22$ $M_{\odot }$pc${}^{-2}$. While the overall velocity field of the molecular gas is dominated by regular rotation out to large radii, with rotation velocity-to-velocity dispersion ratio $\gtrsim 9$, the nuclear region displays substantial kinematic complexity associated with small-scale substructure in the gas distribution. A tilted-ring analysis reveals that the kinematic and photometric position angles are misaligned on average by $\sim 34\pm 26^{\circ }$, and provides evidence of kinematic twisting. These observations provide tantalizing clues to the detailed physical conditions of the circumnuclear environments of actively accreting supermassive black holes.

arXiv comment22 pages, 15 Figures, 4 Tables; Accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journal

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