Results from the NuSTAR Survey of Swift/BAT AGN
Abstract
The Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array (NuSTAR) has enabled studies of the local active galactic nuclei (AGN) to extend into the spectral window above 10 keV with unprecedented spatial resolution and two orders of magnitude better sensitivity than any other instrument operating in that energy range. As a part of its long-term extragalactic program NuSTAR is surveying the nearby population of AGN detected at hard X-ray energies by the Swift Burst Alert Telescope (Swift/BAT). We present results based on 15-25 ks observations of ~150 Swift/BAT AGN surveyed in the first 2.5 years of NuSTAR operation. This sample forms an atlas of the highest quality hard X-ray spectra available to date for a large number of AGN. Assuming a range of hard X-ray spectral models, phenomenological as well as physically motivated, we constrain the main spectral parameters for each source individually and test the applicability of the models on a large sample for the first time. This analysis allows us to determine distributions of the main spectral parameters (spectral index, high-energy cut-off, absorption column, reflection strength, iron line equivalent width) in a well-defined population of nearby AGN. We find that approximately 70% of obscured AGN spectra can be well modeled in terms of simple models used in the literature, while the rest requires careful consideration of more advanced models. We will discuss the implications for the local AGN population, the effects on interpretation of high-redshift AGN observations, and the limitations of the current results.
- Publication:
-
IAU General Assembly
- Pub Date:
- August 2015
- Bibcode:
- 2015IAUGA..2257581B