The effects of X-ray feedback from active galactic nuclei on host galaxy evolution

Abstract

Hydrodynamic simulations of galaxies with active galactic nuclei (AGNs) have typically employed feedback that is purely local, i.e., an injection of energy to the immediate neighborhood of the black hole (BH). We perform GADGET-2 simulations of massive elliptical galaxies with an additional feedback component: an observationally calibrated X-ray radiation field which emanates from the BH and heats gas out to large radii from the galaxy center. We find that including the heating and radiation pressure associated with this X-ray flux in our simulations enhances the effects which are commonly reported from AGN feedback. This new feedback model is twice as effective as traditional feedback at suppressing star formation, produces three times less star formation in the last 6Gyr, and modestly lowers the final BH mass (30%). It is also significantly more effective than an X-ray background in reducing the number of satellite galaxies. © 2011. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved.