| 1. |
- Barack, Leor, et al.
(författare)
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Black holes, gravitational waves and fundamental physics : a roadmap
- 2019
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Ingår i: Classical and quantum gravity. - : IOP Publishing. - 0264-9381 .- 1361-6382. ; 36:14
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Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- The grand challenges of contemporary fundamental physics dark matter, dark energy, vacuum energy, inflation and early universe cosmology, singularities and the hierarchy problem all involve gravity as a key component. And of all gravitational phenomena, black holes stand out in their elegant simplicity, while harbouring some of the most remarkable predictions of General Relativity: event horizons, singularities and ergoregions. The hitherto invisible landscape of the gravitational Universe is being unveiled before our eyes: the historical direct detection of gravitational waves by the LIGO-Virgo collaboration marks the dawn of a new era of scientific exploration. Gravitational-wave astronomy will allow us to test models of black hole formation, growth and evolution, as well as models of gravitational-wave generation and propagation. It will provide evidence for event horizons and ergoregions, test the theory of General Relativity itself, and may reveal the existence of new fundamental fields. The synthesis of these results has the potential to radically reshape our understanding of the cosmos and of the laws of Nature. The purpose of this work is to present a concise, yet comprehensive overview of the state of the art in the relevant fields of research, summarize important open problems, and lay out a roadmap for future progress. This write-up is an initiative taken within the framework of the European Action on 'Black holes, Gravitational waves and Fundamental Physics'.
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| 2. |
- Vito, F., et al.
(författare)
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High-redshift AGN in the Chandra Deep Fields : The obscured fraction and space density of the sub-L* population
- 2018
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Ingår i: Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. - : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 0035-8711 .- 1365-2966. ; 473:2, s. 2378-2406
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We investigate the population of high-redshift (3≤z < 6) active galactic nuclei (AGN) selected in the two deepest X-ray surveys, the 7 Ms Chandra Deep Field-South and 2 Ms Chandra Deep Field-North. Their outstanding sensitivity and spectral characterization of faint sources allow us to focus on the sub-L* regime (logLX ≲ 44), poorly sampled by previous works using shallower data, and the obscured population. Taking fully into account the individual photometric-redshift probability distribution functions, the final sample consists of ≈102 X-ray-selected AGN at 3 ≤ z < 6. The fraction of AGN obscured by column densities logNH > 23 is ~0.6-0.8, once incompleteness effects are taken into account, with no strong dependence on redshift or luminosity. We derived the high-redshift AGN number counts down to F0.5-2 keV = 7 × 10-18 erg cm-2 s-1, extending previous results to fainter fluxes, especially at z > 4. We put the tightest constraints to date on the low-luminosity end of AGN luminosity function at high redshift. The space density, in particular, declines at z > 3 at all luminosities, with only a marginally steeper slope for low-luminosity AGN. By comparing the evolution of the AGN and galaxy densities, we suggest that such a decline at high luminosities is mainly driven by the underlying galaxy population, while at low luminosities there are hints of an intrinsic evolution of the parameters driving nuclear activity. Also, the black hole accretion rate density and star formation rate density, which are usually found to evolve similarly at z ≲ 3, appear to diverge at higher redshifts.
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