X-ray variability of 104 active galactic nuclei

Vaughan, S.; González-Martín, O.
Bibliographical reference

Feeding Compact Objects: Accretion on All Scales, Proceedings of the International Astronomical Union, IAU Symposium, Volume 290, pp. 37-40

Advertised on:
2
2013
Number of authors
2
IAC number of authors
1
Citations
1
Refereed citations
0
Description
We have performed a uniform analysis of the power spectrum densities (PSDs) of 104 nearby (z<0.4) active galactic nuclei (AGN) using 209 XMM-Newton/pn observations, including several AGN classes. These PSDs span ~= 3 decades in temporal frequencies, ranging from minutes to days. We have fitted each PSD to two models: (1) a single power-law model and (2) a bending power-law model. A fraction of 72% show significant variability. The PSD of the majority of the variable AGN was well described by a simple power-law with a mean index of α = 2.01+/-0.01. In 15 sources we found that the bending power law model was preferred with a mean slope of α = 3.08+/-0.04 and a mean bend frequency of <ν b > ~= 2 × 10-4 Hz. Only KUG 1031+398 (RE J1034+396) shows evidence for quasi-periodic oscillations. The `fundamental plane' relating variability timescale, black hole mass, and luminosity is demonstrated using the new X-ray timing results presented here together with a compilation of the previously detected timescales from the literature.