07.03.2025 / 10:30 - 12:00 / Zeuthen, SR 5 | Villa

X-ray properties of the mJy radio galaxies

Olena Torbaniuk

Radio galaxies in the local Universe display diverse extended radio morphologies, optical spectra, and host galaxy properties, which as suggested by studies could arise from intrinsic differences in central SMBH parameters or jet content, or be extrinsically driven by the host galaxy and environmental properties. While research in this field has predominantly focused on the population of the brightest radio galaxies (e.g. 3CRR and 2Jy catalogs with flux limits of Jy), the results remain inconclusive and do not definitively support any of the proposed hypotheses. Moreover, recent studies of less powerful mJy radio galaxies have introduced additional complexity, revealing more compact radio structures compared to their brighter counterparts. In this work, we present the first comprehensive X-ray analysis for a sample of 216 mJy radio galaxies combining optical data from SDSS DR7 and radio observations from NRAO FIRST and NVSS surveys. This extends the study of the radio morphology-accretion mode link, previously examined for Jy radio galaxies, to lower radio powers. We complemented the sample with X-ray data from Chandra, which allows to probe the SMBH accretion properties and processes fueling it at sub-pc/pc scales, and the thermal environments potentially responsible for change of radio morphologies at kpc scales. As a preliminary result, we explore the correlations between radio, X-ray, and optical properties to investigate the possible origins of X-ray emission for different classes of radio galaxies. Our study combines new classifications with existing ones from the literature, providing insights into how SMBH properties, accretion efficiency, and environmental conditions influence the observed diversity in radio morphologies. Furthermore, we compare our findings with high-luminosity radio galaxies from the 3CRR and 2Jy catalogs, placing our results in a broader context and shedding light on the evolutionary pathways of radio-loud AGN.

More Information: https://indico.desy.de/category/698/