The Afterglows of Ultraluminous Quasars

Abstract

Quasars represent a brief phase in the life-cycle of most massive galaxies, but the evolutionary connection between central black holes and their host galaxies remains unclear. While quasars are active and shining brighter than the Compton-limit luminosity, their radiation heats the surrounding medium to the Compton temperature, forming Compton spheres extending to the Strömgren radius of Fe${}^{26+}$/He${}^{2+}$. After the quasars shut off, their ``afterglow'' can be detected through three signatures: (1) an extended X-ray envelope, with a characteristic temperature of $\sim 3\times 10^7$ K; (2) Ly$\alpha$ and Ly$\beta$ lines and the $K-$edge of Fe${}^{26+}$; and (3) nebulosity from hydrogen and helium recombination emission lines. We discuss the possibility of detecting these signatures using {\em Chandra}, the planned {\em XEUS} mission, and ground-based optical telescopes. The luminosity and size of quasar afterglows can be used to constrain the lifetime of quasars.

arXiv comment4 pages in emulateapj5.sty, 3 Figures. To Appear in Astrophysical Journal Letters

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Cited by in corpus (5)

• The Unified Model of Active Galactic Nuclei: II. Evolutionary Connection
• The transverse proximity effect in the z ~ 2 Lyman-alpha forest suggests QSO episodic lifetimes of ~1 Myr
• Extended X-ray Emission in the HI Cavity of NGC 4151: Galaxy-scale AGN Feedback?
• Extended multiwavelength fuzz around red quasars: observational appearance of radiative feedback in action
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