Ionised gas kinematics in MaNGA AGN

Abstract

Context. Feedback from active galactic nuclei (AGNs) in general seems to play an important role in the evolution of galaxies, although the impact of AGN winds on their host galaxies is still unknown in the absence of a detailed analysis. Aims. We aim to analyse the kinematics of a sample of 170 AGN host galaxies as compared to those of a matched control sample of non-active galaxies from the MaNGA survey in order to characterise and estimate the extents of the narrow-line region (NLR) and of the kinematically disturbed region (KDR) by the AGN. Methods. We defined the observed NLR radius (rNLR, o) as the farthest distance from the nucleus within which both [O III]/Hβ and [N II]/Hα ratios fall in the AGN region of the BPT diagram, and the Hα equivalent width was required to be larger than 3.0 Å. The extent of the KDR (rKDR, o) is defined as the distance from the nucleus within which the AGN host galaxies show a more disturbed gas kinematics than the control galaxies. Results. The AGN [O III]λ5007 luminosity ranges from 1039 to 1041 erg s−1, and the kinematics derived from the [O III] line profiles reveal that, on average, the most luminous AGNs (L[O III] > 3.8 × 1040 erg s−1) possess higher residual differences between the gaseous and stellar velocities and velocitie dispersions than their control galaxies in all the radial bins. Spatially resolved NLRs and KDRs were found in 55 and 46 AGN host galaxies, with corrected radii 0.2 < rKDR, c < 2.3 kpc and 0.4 < rNLR, c < 10.1 kpc and a relation between the two given by log rKDR, c = (0.53 ± 0.12) log rNLR, c + (1.07 ± 0.22), respectively. On average, the extension of the KDR corresponds to about 30% of that of the NLR. Assuming that the KDR is due to an AGN outflow, we have estimated ionised gas mass outflow rates that range between 10−5 and ∼1 M⊙ yr−1, and kinetic powers that range from 1034 to 1040 erg s−1. Conclusions. Comparing the power of the AGN ionised outflows with the AGN luminosities, they are always below the 0.05 LAGN model threshold for having an important feedback effect on their respective host galaxies. The mass outflow rates (and power) of our AGN sample correlate with their luminosities, populating the lowest AGN luminosity range of the correlations previously found for more powerful sources.