Related papers: A new technique to efficiently select Compton-thic…

As matter accretes onto the central supermassive black holes in active galactic nuclei (AGN), X-rays are emitted. We present a population synthesis model that accounts for the summed X-ray emission from growing black holes; modulo the…

We present the systematic broadband X-ray spectral analysis of 52 Compton-thick ($24 \leq \log N_{\mathrm{H}}^{\mathrm{LOS}}/\mathrm{cm}^{-2}$) active galactic nucleus (CTAGN) candidates selected by the Swift/BAT all-sky hard X-ray survey…

We present X-ray observations of the active galactic nucleus (AGN) in NGC 4785. The source is a local Seyfert 2 which has not been studied so far in much detail. It was recently detected with high significance in the 15-60 keV band in the…

We explore the environment of z~1 AGN using a sample of 53 spectroscopically identified X-ray sources in the All-wavelength Extended Groth strip International Survey. We quantify the local density in the vicinity of an X-ray source by…

Identifying Active Galactic Nuclei (AGNs) through their X-ray emission is efficient, but necessarily biased against X-ray-faint objects. We aim to characterize this bias by comparing X-ray-selected AGNs to the ones identified through…

We present the X-ray analysis of the most luminous obscured active galactic nuclei (AGN) inside local ultraluminous infrared galaxies (ULIRGs). Our sample consists of ten sources, harbouring AGN components with estimated luminosity in…

Compact Obscured Nuclei (CONs) are heavily obscured infrared cores that have been found in local (ultra)luminous infrared galaxies (U/LIRGs). They show bright emission from vibrationally excited rotational transitions of HCN, known as…

Since a large fraction of active galactic nuclei (AGN) is missed in common UV-excess surveys and is even hard to find in radio, near-IR and X-ray surveys, we have used a new AGN selection technique which is expected to be not affected by…

The diffuse cosmic X-ray background (CXB) is the sum of the emission of discrete sources, mostly massive black-holes accreting matter in active galactic nuclei (AGN). The CXB spectrum differs from the integration of the spectra of…

We present the combined Chandra and Swift-BAT spectral analysis of seven Seyfert 2 galaxies selected from the Swift-BAT 100-month catalog. We selected nearby (z<=0.03) sources lacking of a ROSAT counterpart and never previously observed…

A synthesis model for the cosmic X-ray Background (XRB) is presented, which includes a proper treatment of Compton scattering in the absorbing matter for type 2 AGN. Evidence for a decrease of the relative importance of type 2 AGN at high…

Using data from the All Wavelength Extended Groth Strip International Survey (AEGIS) we statistically detect the extended X-ray emission in the interstellar medium (ISM)/intra-cluster medium (ICM) in both active and normal galaxies at 0.3…

Recent work by Risaliti et al.(1999) suggests that more than half of all Seyfert 2 galaxies in the local universe are Compton-thick (N_H > 10^24 cm^-2). This has implications for AGN synthesis models for the X-ray background (XRB), the…

We present some results of the deepest extragalactic survey performed by the INTEGRAL satellite. The fraction of very absorbed AGN is quite large. The sharp decrease in the absorption fraction with X-ray luminosity observed at lower-energy…

X-rays offer a reliable method to identify Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN). However, in the high-redshift Universe X-ray AGN are poorly sampled due to their relatively low space density and the small areas covered by X-ray surveys. In addition…

We investigated AGN activity in low-mass galaxies, an important regime that can shed light onto BH formation and evolution, and their interaction with their host galaxies. We identified 336 AGN candidates from a parent sample of $\sim…

According to the latest versions of synthesis modeling of the Cosmic X-ray Background, Compton Thick AGN should represent ~50% of the total absorbed AGN population. However, despite their importance in the cosmological context, only a few…

The 9-month Swift Burst Alert Telescope (BAT) catalog provides the first unbiased (log N_H < 24) look at local (<z> = 0.03) AGN. In this paper, we present the collected X-ray properties (0.3 - 12keV) for the 153 AGN detected. In addition,…

The majority of active galactic nuclei (AGN) are obscured by large amounts of absorbing material that makes them invisible at many wavelengths. X-rays, given their penetrating power, provide the most secure way for finding these AGN. The…

Highly obscured active galactic nuclei (AGN) are common in nearby galaxies, but are difficult to observe beyond the local Universe, where they are expected to significantly contribute to the black hole accretion rate density. Furthermore,…