A synthetic view of AGN evolution and supermassive black holes growth

TL;DR

This paper synthesizes models of AGN evolution to understand supermassive black hole growth, revealing anti-hierarchical growth patterns, constraining radiative efficiency, and exploring black hole-galaxy relations at intermediate redshifts.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive framework linking AGN evolution, black hole growth, and feedback processes, with new constraints on black hole-galaxy scaling relations at 1<z<2.

Findings

SMBH mass function evolves anti-hierarchically

Tight constraints on AGN radiative efficiency

Evolution of black hole-galaxy scaling relation at 1<z<2

Abstract

I will describe the constraints available from a study of AGN evolution synthesis models on the growth of the supermassive black holes (SMBH) population in the two main 'modes' observed (kinetic- and radiatively-dominated, respectively). I will show how SMBH mass function evolves anti-hierarchically, i.e. the most massive holes grew earlier and faster than less massive ones, and I will also derive tight constraints on the average radiative efficiency of AGN. An outlook on the redshift evolution of the AGN kinetic luminosity function will also be discussed, thus providing a robust physical framework for phenomenological models of AGN feedback within structure formation. Finally, I will present new constraints on the evolution of the black hole-galaxy scaling relation at 1<z<2 derived by exploiting the full multi-wavelength coverage of the COSMOS survey on a complete sample of 90 type 1 AGN.