The WISSH survey: X-raying the most luminous QSOs in the universe
Abstract
I will report on the on-going Wise All Sky Survey/SDSS selected hyper-luminous(WISSH) quasars survey. It consists of a sample of ~90 Type 1 reddened quasarsat z~2-3. They represent the most luminous (L_bol >10^14 L_sun) quasars at theirnumber density peak and, remarkably, show widespread signs of outflows in the UV/optical spectrum. This is the first systematic and multi-wavelength study of these unique sources at the brightest end of the AGN luminosity function. In this talk, I will present the X-ray properties of the WISSH quasars based on both proprietary and archival data, and their implications in the context of the AGN/host galaxy co-evolutionary scenario. Furthermore, I will also report on the improvement provided by the Athena/X-IFU in our understanding of these extreme sources, the feedback mechanism at work, and in characterizing them as a population. This project is relevant to the activities carried out in the SWG2.2 "Understanding the build-up of SMBH and galaxies"
- Publication:
-
Exploring the Hot and Energetic Universe: The first scientific conference dedicated to the Athena X-ray observatory
- Pub Date:
- September 2015
- Bibcode:
- 2015eheu.conf...49Z