| 1. |
- Aalto, Susanne, 1964, et al.
(författare)
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Probing highly obscured, self-absorbed galaxy nuclei with vibrationally excited HCN
- 2015
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Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 584
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We present high resolution (0.'' 4) IRAM PdBI and ALMA mm and submm observations of the (ultra) luminous infrared galaxies ((U)LIRGs) IRAS 17208-0014, Arp220, IC 860 and Zw049.057 that reveal intense line emission from vibrationally excited (nu(2) = 1) J = 3-2 and 4-3 HCN. The emission is emerging from buried, compact (r 5 x 10(13) L-circle dot kpc(-2). These nuclei are likely powered by accreting supermassive black holes (SMBHs) and/or hot (>200 K) extreme starbursts. Vibrational, nu(2) = 1, lines of HCN are excited by intense 14 mu m mid-infrared emission and are excellent probes of the dynamics, masses, and physical conditions of (U)LIRG nuclei when H-2 column densities exceed 10(24) cm(-2). It is clear that these lines open up a new interesting avenue to gain access to the most obscured AGNs and starbursts. Vibrationally excited HCN acts as a proxy for the absorbed mid-infrared emission from the embedded nuclei, which allows for reconstruction of the intrinsic, hotter dust SED. In contrast, we show strong evidence that the ground vibrational state (. = 0), J = 3-2 and 4-3 rotational lines of HCN and HCO+ fail to probe the highly enshrouded, compact nuclear regions owing to strong self-and continuum absorption. The HCN and HCO+ line profiles are double-peaked because of the absorption and show evidence of non-circular motions-possibly in the form of in-or outflows. Detections of vibrationally excited HCN in external galaxies are so far limited to ULIRGs and early-type spiral LIRGs, and we discuss possible causes for this. We tentatively suggest that the peak of vibrationally excited HCN emission is connected to a rapid stage of nuclear growth, before the phase of strong feedback.
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| 2. |
- Burillo, S. G., et al.
(författare)
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ALMA imaging of C2H emission in the disk of NGC 1068
- 2017
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Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 608, s. A56-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Aims. We study the feedback of star formation and nuclear activity on the chemistry of molecular gas in NGC 1068, a nearby (D = 14 Mpc) Seyfert 2 barred galaxy, by analyzing whether the abundances of key molecular species such as ethynyl (C2H), which is a classical tracer of photon dominated regions (PDR), change in the different environments of the disk of the galaxy. Methods. We used the Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA) to map the emission of the hyperfine multiplet of C2H(N = 1-0) and its underlying continuum emission in the central r similar or equal to 35" (2.5 kpc) region of the disk of NGC 1068 with a spatial resolution 1.0 x 0.7 (similar or equal to 50-70 pc). We used maps of the dust continuum emission obtained at 349 GHz by ALMA to derive the H-2 gas column densities and combined these with the C2H map at matched spatial resolution to estimate the fractional abundance of this species. We developed a set of time-dependent chemical models, which include shocks, gas-phase PDRs, and gas-grain chemical models to determine the origin of the C2H gas. Results. A sizeable fraction of the total C2H line emission is detected from the r similar or equal to 1.3 kpc starburst (SB) ring, which is a region that concentrates the bulk of the recent massive star formation in the disk traced by the Pa alpha emission complexes imaged by the Hubble Space Telescope (HST). However, the brightest C2H emission originates from a r similar or equal to 200 pc off -centered circumnuclear disk (CND), where evidence of a molecular outflow has been previously found in other molecular tracers imaged by ALMA. We also detect significant emission that connects the CND with the outer disk in a region that probes the interface between the molecular disk and ionized gas outflow out to r similar or equal to 400 pc. We derived the fractional abundances of C2H (X(C2H)) assuming local thermodynamic equilibrium (LTE) conditions and a set of excitation temperatures (T-ex) constrained by the previous multiline CO studies of the galaxy. Our estimates range from X(C2H) similar or equal to a few 10(-8) in the SB ring up to X(C2H) similar or equal to a few 10(-7) in the outflow region. The PDR models that incorporate gas-grain chemistry are able to account for X(C2H) in the SB ring for moderately dense (n(H-2) >= 10(4) cm(-3)) and moderately UV-irradiated gas (UV-field = 10(4-5) cm(-3)). Conclusions. We find that the transient conditions required to fit the high values of X(C2H) in the outflow are likely due to UV or X-ray irradiated non-dissociative shocks associated with the highly turbulent interface between the outflow and molecular gas in NGC 1068. Although the inferred local timescales are short, the erosion of molecular clouds by the active galactic nucleus (AGN) wind and/or the jet likely resupplies the interface working surface continuously, making a nearly steady state persist in the disk of the galaxy.
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| 3. |
- Burillo, S. G., et al.
(författare)
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ALMA resolves the torus of NGC 1068: Continuum and molecular line emission
- 2016
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Ingår i: Astrophysical Journal Letters. - : American Astronomical Society. - 2041-8213 .- 2041-8205. ; 823:1, s. Art. no. L12-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We used the Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA) to map the emission of the CO(6-5) molecular line and the 432 mu m continuum emission from the 300 pc sized circumnuclear disk (CND) of the nearby Seyfert 2 galaxy NGC 1068 with a spatial resolution of similar to 4 pc. These observations spatially resolve the CND and, for the first time, image the dust emission, the molecular gas distribution, and the kinematics from a 7-10 pc diameter disk that represents the submillimeter counterpart of the putative torus of NGC 1068. We fitted the nuclear spectral energy distribution of the torus using ALMA and near-and mid-infrared (NIR/MIR) data with CLUMPY torus models. The mass and radius of the best-fit solution for the torus are both consistent with the values derived from the ALMA data alone: M-gas(torus) = (1 +/- 0.3) x 10(5) M-circle dot and R-torus = 3.5 +/- 0.5 pc. The dynamics of the molecular gas in the torus show strong non-circular motions and enhanced turbulence superposed on a surprisingly slow rotation pattern of the disk. By contrast with the nearly edge-on orientation of the H2O megamaser disk, we found evidence suggesting that the molecular torus is less inclined (i = 34 degrees-66 degrees) at larger radii. The lopsided morphology and complex kinematics of the torus could be the signature of the Papaloizou-Pringle instability, long predicted to likely drive the dynamical evolution of active galactic nuclei tori.
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| 4. |
- Burillo, S. G., et al.
(författare)
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Molecular line emission in NGC 1068 imaged with ALMA : I. An AGN-driven outflow in the dense molecular gas
- 2014
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Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 567, s. 125-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Aims. We investigate the fueling and the feedback of star formation and nuclear activity in NGC 1068, a nearby (D = 14 Mpc) Seyfert 2 barred galaxy, by analyzing the distribution and kinematics of the molecular gas in the disk. We aim to understand if and how gas accretion can self-regulate.Methods. We have used the Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA) to map the emission of a set of dense molecular gas (n(H2) ' 1056 cm3) tracers (CO(3-2), CO(6-5), HCN(4-3), HCO+(4-3), and CS(7-6)) and their underlying continuum emission in the central r ∼ 2 kpc of NGC 1068 with spatial resolutions ∼0:3000:500 (∼20-35 pc for the assumed distance of D = 14 Mpc). Results. The sensitivity and spatial resolution of ALMA give an unprecedented detailed view of the distribution and kinematics of the dense molecular gas (n(H2) ≈ 1056cm3) in NGC 1068. Molecular line and dust continuum emissions are detected from a r ∼ 200 pc off-centered circumnuclear disk (CND), from the 2.6 kpc-diameter bar region, and from the r ∼ 1:3 kpc starburst (SB) ring. Most of the emission in HCO+, HCN, and CS stems from the CND. Molecular line ratios show dramatic order-of-magnitude changes inside the CND that are correlated with the UV/X-ray illumination by the active galactic nucleus (AGN), betraying ongoing feedback. We used the dust continuum fluxes measured by ALMA together with NIR/MIR data to constrain the properties of the putative torus using CLUMPY models and found a torus radius of 20+6 10 pc. The Fourier decomposition of the gas velocity field indicates that rotation is perturbed by an inward radial flow in the SB ring and the bar region. However, the gas kinematics from r ∼ 50 pc out to r ∼ 400 pc reveal a massive (Mmol ∼ 2:7+0:9 1:2 × 107 M) outflow in all molecular tracers. The tight correlation between the ionized gas outflow, the radio jet, and the occurrence of outward motions in the disk suggests that the outflow is AGN driven. Conclusions. The molecular outflow is likely launched when the ionization cone of the narrow line region sweeps the nuclear disk. The outflow rate estimated in the CND, dM=dt ∼ 63+21 37 M yr1, is an order of magnitude higher than the star formation rate at these radii, confirming that the outflow is AGN driven. The power of the AGN is able to account for the estimated momentum and kinetic luminosity of the outflow. The CND mass load rate of the CND outflow implies a very short gas depletion timescale of ≤1 Myr. The CND gas reservoir is likely replenished on longer timescales by efficient gas inflow from the outer disk. © ESO 2014.
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| 5. |
- Cormier, D., et al.
(författare)
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The molecular gas reservoir of 6 low-metallicity galaxies from the Herschel Dwarf Galaxy Survey A ground-based follow-up survey of CO(1-0), CO(2-1), and CO(3-2)
- 2014
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Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 564
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Context. Observations of nearby starburst and spiral galaxies have revealed that molecular gas is the driver of star formation. However, some nearby low-metallicity dwarf galaxies are actively forming stars, but CO, the most common tracer of this reservoir, is faint, leaving us with a puzzle about how star formation proceeds in these environments. Aims. We aim to quantify the molecular gas reservoir in a subset of 6 galaxies from the Herschel Dwarf Galaxy Survey with newly acquired CO data and to link this reservoir to the observed star formation activity. Methods. We present CO(1-0), CO(2-1), and CO(3-2) observations obtained at the ATNE Mopra 22-m, APEX, and IRAM 30-m telescopes, as well as [CII] 157 mu m and [OI] 63 mu m observations obtained with the Herschel/PACS spectrometer in the 6 low-metallicity dwarf galaxies: Haro 11, Mrk 1089, Mrk 930, NGC 4861, NGC 625, and UM 311. We derived their molecular gas masses from several methods, including using the CO-to-H-2 conversion factor X-CO (both Galactic and metallicity-scaled values) and dust measurements. The molecular and atomic gas reservoirs were compared to the star formation activity. We also constrained the physical conditions of the molecular clouds using the non-LTE code RADEX and the spectral synthesis code Cloudy. Results. We detect CO in 5 of the 6 galaxies, including first detections in Haro 11 (Z similar to 0.4 Z(circle dot)), Mrk 930 (0.2 Z(circle dot)), and UM 311 (0.5 Z(circle dot)), but CO remains undetected in NGC 4861 (0.2 Z(circle dot)). The CO luminosities are low, while [CII] is bright in these galaxies, resulting in [CII]/CO(1-0) >= 10 000. Our dwarf galaxies are in relatively good agreement with the Schmidt-Kennicutt relation for total gas. They show short molecular depletion timescales, even when considering metallicity-scaled X-CO factors. Those galaxies are dominated by their HI gas, except Haro 11, which has high star formation efficiency and is dominated by ionized and molecular gas. We determine the mass of each ISM phase in Haro 11 using Cloudy and estimate an equivalent X-CO factor that is 10 times higher than the Galactic value. Overall, our results confirm the emerging picture that CO suffers from significant selective photodissociation in low-metallicity dwarf galaxies.
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| 6. |
- Costagliola, Francesco, 1981, et al.
(författare)
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Exploring the molecular chemistry and excitation in obscured luminous infrared galaxies -- An ALMA mm-wave spectral scan of NGC 4418
- 2015
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Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 582, s. A91-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Context. Extragalactic observations allow the study of molecular chemistry and excitation under physical conditions which may differ greatly from those found in the Milky Way. The compact, obscured nuclei (CON) of luminous infrared galaxies (LIRG) combine large molecular columns with intense infrared (IR), ultra-violet (UV), and X- radiation and represent ideal laboratories for the study of the chemistry of the interstellar medium (ISM) under extreme conditions.Aims. Our aim was to obtain for the first time a multi-band spectral scan of a LIRG, and to derive molecular abundances and excitation to be compared to other Galactic and extragalactic environments.Methods. We obtained an ALMA Cycle 0 spectral scan of the dusty LIRG NGC 4418, spanning a total of 70.7 GHz in bands 3, 6, and 7. We use a combined local thermal equilibrium (LTE) and non-LTE (NLTE) fit of the spectrum in order to identify the molecular species and to derive column densities and excitation temperatures. We derive molecular abundances and compare them with other Galactic and extragalactic sources by means of a principal component analysis.Results. We detect 317 emission lines from a total of 45 molecular species, including 15 isotopic substitutions and 6 vibrationally excited variants. Our LTE/NLTE fit find kinetic temperatures from 20 to 350 K, and densities between 105 and 107 cm-3. The spectrum is dominated by vibrationally excited HC3N, HCN, and HNC, with vibrational temperatures from 300 to 450 K. We find that the chemistry of NCG 4418 is characterized by high abundances of HC3N, SiO, H2S, and c-HCCCH but a low CH3OH abundance. A principal component analysis shows that NGC 4418 and Arp 220 share very similar molecular abundances and excitation, which clearly set them apart from other Galactic and extragalactic environments.Conclusions. Our spectral scan confirms that the chemical complexity in the nucleus of NGC 4418 is one of the highest ever observed outside our Galaxy. The similar molecular abundances observed toward NCG 4418 and Arp 220 are consistent with a hot gas-phase chemistry, with the relative abundances of SiO and CH3OH being regulated by shocks and X-ray driven dissociation. The bright emission from vibrationally excited species confirms the presence of a compact IR source, with an effective diameter smaller than 5 pc and brightness temperatures higher than 350 K. The molecular abundances and the vibrationally excited spectrum are consistent with a young AGN/starburst system. We suggest that NGC 4418 may be a template for a new kind of chemistry and excitation, typical of CON. Because of the narrow line widths and bright molecular emission, NGC 4418 is the ideal target for further studies of the chemistry in CONs.
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| 7. |
- Martin, S., et al.
(författare)
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The unbearable opaqueness of Arp220
- 2016
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Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 590, s. Art. no. 25-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Context. The origin of the enormous luminosities of the two opaque nuclei of Arp 220, the prototypical ultra-luminous infrared galaxy, remains a mystery because we lack observational tools to explore the innermost regions around the nuclei. Aims. We explore the potential of imaging vibrationally excited molecular emission at high angular resolution to better understand the morphology and physical structure of the dense gas in Arp 220 and to gain insight into the nature of the nuclear powering sources. Methods. The Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) provided simultaneous observations of HCN, HCO+, and vibrationally excited HCN v2 = 1f emission. Their J = 4-3 and 3-2 transitions were observed at a matching resolution of ~0.5??, which allows us to isolate the emission from the two nuclei. Results. The HCN and HCO+ lines within the ground-vibrational state poorly describe the central ~100 pc region around the nuclei because there are strong effects of cool absorbing gas in the foreground and severe line blending that is due to the prolific molecular emission of Arp 220. Vibrationally excited emission of HCN is detected in both nuclei with a very high ratio relative to the total LFIR, higher than in any other observed galaxy and well above what is observed in Galactic hot cores. HCN v2 = 1f is observed to be marginally resolved in ~60 × 50 pc regions inside the dusty ~100 pc sized nuclear cores. Its emission is centered on our derived individual nuclear velocities based on HCO+ emission (VWN = 5342 ± 4 and VEN = 5454 ± 8 km s-1, for the western and eastern nucleus, respectively). With virial masses within r ~ 25-30 pc based on the HCN v2 = 1f line widths, we estimate gas surface densities (gas fraction fg = 0.1) of 3 ± 0.3 × 104 M? pc-2 (WN) and 1.1 ± 0.1 × 104 M? pc-2 (EN). The 4-3/3-2 flux density ratio could be consistent with optically thick emission, which would further constrain the size of the emitting region to >15 pc (EN) and >22 pc (WN). The absorption systems that may hide up to 70% of the HCN and HCO+ emission are found at velocities of-50 km s-1 (EN) and 6,-140, and-575 km s-1 (WN) relative to velocities of the nuclei. Blueshifted absorptions are the evidence of outflowing motions from both nuclei. Conclusions. Although vibrationally excited molecular transitions could also be affected by opacity, they may be our best tool to peer into the central few tens of parsecs around compact obscured nuclei like those of Arp 220. The bright vibrational emission implies the existence of a hot dust region radiatively pumping these transitions. We find evidence of a strong temperature gradient that would be responsible for both the HCN v2 pumping and the absorbed profiles from the vibrational ground state as a result of both continuum and self-absorption by cooler foreground gas.
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| 8. |
- Viti, S., et al.
(författare)
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Molecular line emission in NGC 1068 imaged with ALMA II. The chemistry of the dense molecular gas
- 2014
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Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 570, s. 28-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Aims. We present a detailed analysis of Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) Bands 7 and 9 data of CO, HCO+, HCN, and CS, augmented with Plateau de Bure Interferometer (PdBI) data of the ~200 pc circumnuclear disc (CND) and the ~1.3 kpc starburst ring (SB ring) of NGC 1068, a nearby (D = 14 Mpc) Seyfert 2 barred galaxy. We aim to determine the physical characteristics of the dense gas present in the CND, and to establish whether the different line intensity ratios we find within the CND, as well as between the CND and the SB ring, are due to excitation effects (gas density and temperature differences) or to a different chemistry.Methods. We estimate the column densities of each species in local thermodynamic equilibrium (LTE). We then compute large one-dimensional, non-LTE radiative transfer grids (using RADEX) by using only the CO transitions first, and then all the available molecules to constrain the densities, temperatures, and column densities within the CND. We finally present a preliminary set of chemical models to determine the origin of the gas.Results. We find that, in general, the gas in the CND is very dense (>105 cm-3) and hot (T> 150 K), with differences especially in the temperature across the CND. The AGN position has the lowest CO/HCO+, CO/HCN, and CO/CS column density ratios. The RADEX analyses seem to indicate that there is chemical differentiation across the CND. We also find differences between the chemistry of the SB ring and some regions of the CND; the SB ring is also much colder and less dense than the CND. Chemical modelling does not succeed in reproducing all the molecular ratios with one model per region, suggesting the presence of multi-gas phase components.Conclusions. The LTE, RADEX, and chemical analyses all indicate that more than one gas-phase component is necessary to uniquely fit all the available molecular ratios within the CND. A higher number of molecular transitions at the ALMA resolution is necessary to determine quantitatively the physical and chemical characteristics of these components.
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