A SPectroscopic survey of biased halos In the Reionization Era (ASPIRE): A First Look at the Rest-frame Optical Spectra of $z > 6.5$ Quasars Using JWST

Abstract

Studies of rest-frame optical emission in quasars at $z>6$ have historically been limited by the wavelengths accessible by ground-based telescopes. The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) now offers the opportunity to probe this emission deep into the reionization epoch. We report the observations of eight quasars at $z>6.5$ using the JWST/NIRCam Wide Field Slitless Spectroscopy, as a part of the ''A SPectroscopic survey of biased halos In the Reionization Era (ASPIRE)" program. Our JWST spectra cover the quasars' emission between rest frame $\sim$ 4100 and 5100 à . The profiles of these quasars' broad H$β$ emission lines span a FWHM from 3000 to 6000 $\rm{km~s^{-1}}$. The H$β$-based virial black hole (BH) masses, ranging from 0.6 to 2.1 billion solar masses, are generally consistent with their MgII-based BH masses. The new measurements based on the more reliable H$β$ tracer thus confirm the existence of billion solar-mass BHs in the reionization epoch. In the observed [OIII] $λλ$4960,5008 doublets of these luminous quasars, broad components are more common than narrow core components ($\le~1200~\rm{km~s^{-1}}$), and only one quasar shows stronger narrow components than broad. Two quasars exhibit significantly broad and blueshifted [OIII] emission, thought to trace galactic-scale outflows, with median velocities of $-610~\rm{km~s^{-1}}$ and $-1430~\rm{km~s^{-1}}$ relative to the [CII] $158\,μ$m line. All eight quasars show strong optical FeII emission, and follow the Eigenvector 1 relations defined by low-redshift quasars. The entire ASPIRE program will eventually cover 25 quasars and provide a statistical sample for the studies of the BHs and quasar spectral properties.

13 pages, 4 figures, accepted for publication in ApJL