Related papers: Universal spectral shape of AGN with high accretio…
The spectra of quasars and NLS1 galaxies show surprising similarity in their spectral shape. They seem to scale only with the accretion rate. This is in contradiction with the simple expectations from the standard disk model which predicts…
In a previous paper (Henri & Petrucci, hereafter paper I), we have derived a new model in order to explain the UV and X-ray emission of radio quiet AGNs. This model assumes that a point source of relativistic leptons (e+,e-) illuminates the…
The main characteristics of the average spectrum of radio quiet AGN in the UV and X-ray range are reviewed, and the emission mechanisms are discussed in the framework of accretion disk models, in particular the ``irradiated cold…
When Beppo-SAX measured the 0.1--12 keV spectrum of RE J1034+396, observations in the optical, UV and EUV were also taken within a few weeks. This multiwavelength spectrum placed very strong constraints on its unusually hot big blue bump…
We model the broadband (optical/UV and X-ray) continuum spectrum of the "changing-look" active galactic nucleus (AGN) Mrk 1018 as it fades from Seyfert 1 to 1.9 in $\sim 8$ years. The brightest spectrum, with Eddington ratio $L/L_{\rm…
We present an improved calculation of the vertical structure and ultraviolet spectrum of a dissipative accretion disk in an AGN. We calculate model spectra in which the viscous stress is proportional to the total pressure, the gas pressure…
Radiation emitted from an accretion disk around a massive black hole is a widely discussed model for the UV/soft X-ray excess emission observed in the spectra of many AGN. A self-consistent calculation of the structure and the emerging…
We discuss a model of X-ray variability of active galactic nuclei (AGN). We consider multiple spots which originate on the surface of an accretion disk following intense irradiation by coronal flares. The spots move with the disk around the…
(Abridged) Narrow Line Seyfert 1 (NLS1) galaxies have low mass black holes and mass accretion rates close to (or exceeding) Eddington, so a standard blackbody accretion disc should peak in the EUV. However, the lack of true absorption…
Massive stars can form within or be captured by AGN disks, influencing both the thermal structure and metallicity of the disk environment. In a previous work, we investigated isotropic accretion onto massive stars from a gas-rich,…
The presence of the warm absorber of considerable optical depth is seen in many AGN. We show that this medium may affect significantly the optical/UV spectrum of an AGN by backscattering a fraction of the total radiation flux towards the…
The supermassive black holes in active galactic nuclei (AGN) and stellar-mass black holes in X-ray binaries (XRBs) are believed to work in a similar way. While XRBs evolve rapidly and several sources have undergone a few complete cycles…
We present a model of accretion disk where the disk luminosity is entirely due to the reprocessing of hard radiation impinging on the disk. The hard radiation itself is emitted by a hot point source above the disk, that could be physically…
We study the differences in X-ray properties of luminous radio galaxies and their radio-quiet counterparts. In order to avoid biases associated with the dependence of X-ray properties on the black hole mass and Eddington ratio, the…
Observations have shown that the Eddington ratios (the ratio of the bolometric luminosity to the Eddington luminosity) in QSOs/active galactic nuclei (AGNs) cover a wide range. In this paper we connect the demography of AGNs obtained by the…
We reexamine the hypothesis that the optical/UV/soft X-ray continuum of Active Galactic Nuclei is thermal emission from an accretion disk. Previous studies have shown that fitting the spectra with the standard, optically thick and…
Active Galactic Nuclei are powered by accretion onto massive black holes. Although radio-quiet objects are not as spectacular sources of very high energy photons as radio-loud ones this class of objects also represents a challenge for…
We investigate how the total radio luminosity of AGN-powered radio sources depends on their accretion luminosity and the central black hole mass. Our studies cover about seven orders of magnitude in accretion luminosity and the full range…
Accretion disks around stellar-mass black holes offer unique opportunities to study the fundamental physics of standard thin disks, super-Eddington disks, and structure that may be connected to flux variability. These local analogues of…
X-ray reflection generates much of the spectral complexity in the X-ray spectra of AGN. It is argued that strong relativistic blurring of the reflection spectrum should commonly be expected from objects accreting at a high Eddington rate.…