Modeling quasar proximity zones in a realistic cosmological environment with a self-consistent light curve

Author:

Zhou Yihao1ORCID,Chen Huanqing2ORCID,Matteo Tiziana Di1ORCID,Ni Yueying3ORCID,Croft Rupert A C1,Bird Simeon4ORCID

Affiliation:

1. McWillams Center for Cosmology, Department of Physics, Carnegie Mellon University , Pittsburgh, PA 15213 , USA

2. Canadian Institute for Theoretical Astrophysics, University of Toronto , 60 St George St, Toronto, ON M5R 2M8 , Canada

3. Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics , 60 Garden Street, Cambridge, MA 02138 , USA

4. Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of California , Riverside, 900 University Ave., Riverside, CA 92521 , USA

Abstract

ABSTRACT We study quasar proximity zones in a simulation that includes a self-consistent quasar formation model and realistic intergalactic medium (IGM) environments. The quasar host halo is 1013 M⊙ at z = 6, more massive than typical halos studied in previous work. Between 6 < z < 7.5, the quasar luminosity varies rapidly, with a mean magnitude of MUV, mean = −24.8 and the fluctuation reaching up to two orders of magnitude. Using this light curve to post-process the dense environment around the quasar, we find that the proximity zone size (Rp) ranges between 0.5 and 5 pMpc. We show that the light curve variability causes a similar degree of scatter in Rp as does the density fluctuation, both of which result in a standard deviation of ∼0.3 pMpc. The Rp traces the light curve fluctuations closely but with a time delay of ∼104 yr, breaking the correspondence between the Rp and the contemporaneous MUV. This also indicates that we can only infer quasar activity within the past ∼104 yr instead of the integrated lifetime from Rp in the later part of cosmic reionization. Compared with the variable light curve, a constant light curve underestimates the Rp by 13 per cent at the dim end (MUV ∼ −23.5), and overestimates the Rp by 30 per cent at the bright end (MUV ∼ −26). By calculating the Rp generated by a number of quasars, we show that variable light curves predict a wider Rp distribution than lightbulb models, and readily explain the extremely small Rp values that have been observed.

Funder

NSERC

NASA

NSF

Publisher

Oxford University Press (OUP)

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