Dynamics and formation of obscuring tori in AGNs

TL;DR

This paper uses N-body simulations to study how self-gravitating, clumpy tori form around AGNs, revealing their structure, dynamics, and potential formation scenarios during AGN activation.

Contribution

It presents a novel simulation-based analysis of torus formation in AGNs considering winds and initial conditions, advancing understanding of their evolution and structure.

Findings

Clumpy clouds form a toroidal region through N-body dynamics.

Cloud velocities at the inner boundary are lower than in disk models.

The study discusses torus formation during the onset of AGN activity.

Abstract

We considered the evolution of a self-gravitating clumpy torus in the gravitational field of the central mass of an active galactic nucleus (AGN) in the framework of the N-body problem. The initial conditions take into account winds with different opening angles. Results of our N-body simulations show that the clouds moving on orbits with a spread in inclinations and eccentricities form a toroidal region. The velocity of the clouds at the inner boundary of the torus is lower than in a disk model that can explain the observed rotation curves. We discuss the scenario of torus formation related with the beginning of the AGN stage.