A UV TO MID-IR STUDY OF AGN SELECTION

Chung, Sun Mi; Kochanek, Christopher S.; Assef, Roberto; Brown, Michael J. I.; Stern, Daniel; Jannuzi, Buell T.; Gonzalez, Anthony H.; Hickox, Ryan C.; Moustakas, John

Abstract

We classify the spectral energy distributions (SEDs) of 431,038 sources in the 9 deg(2) Bootes field of the NOAO Deep Wide-Field Survey (NDWFS). There are up to 17 bands of data available per source, including ultraviolet (GALEX), optical (NDWFS), near-IR (NEWFIRM), and mid-infrared (IRAC and MIPS) data, as well as spectroscopic redshifts for similar to 20,000 objects, primarily from the AGN and Galaxy Evolution Survey. We fit galaxy, active galactic nucleus (AGN), stellar, and brown dwarf templates to the observed SEDs, which yield spectral classes for the Galactic sources and photometric redshifts and galaxy/AGN luminosities for the extragalactic sources. The photometric redshift precision of the galaxy and AGN samples are sigma/(1 + z) = 0.040 and sigma/(1 + z) = 0.169, respectively, with the worst 5% outliers excluded. On the basis of the chi(2)(nu) of the SED fit for each SED model, we are able to distinguish between Galactic and extragalactic sources for sources brighter than I = 23.5 mag. We compare the SED fits for a galaxy-only model and a galaxy-AGN model. Using known X-ray and spectroscopic AGN samples, we confirm that SED fitting can be successfully used as a method to identify large populations of AGNs, including spatially resolved AGNs with significant contributions from the host galaxy and objects with the emission line ratios of composite spectra. We also use our results to compare with the X-ray, mid-IR, optical color, and emission line ratio selection techniques. For an F-ratio threshold of F > 10, we find 16,266 AGN candidates brighter than I = 23.5 mag and a surface density of similar to 1900 AGN deg(-2).

Más información

Título según WOS: A UV TO MID-IR STUDY OF AGN SELECTION
Título según SCOPUS: A UV to mid-IR study of AGN selection
Título de la Revista: ASTROPHYSICAL JOURNAL
Volumen: 790
Número: 1
Editorial: IOP PUBLISHING LTD
Fecha de publicación: 2014
Idioma: English
URL: http://stacks.iop.org/0004-637X/790/i=1/a=54?key=crossref.eccaf00f526ed4b9e48d5b4b2b7c97c3
DOI:

10.1088/0004-637X/790/1/54

Notas: ISI, SCOPUS