Relativistic iron Kα line detection in the Suzaku spectra of IC 4329A

Abstract

We present an analysis of five Suzaku observations of the bright Seyfert1 galaxy IC 4329A. The broad energy band and high signal-to-noise ratio of the data give new constraints on the iron Kα line profile and its relationship with the Compton hump at higher energies. The Fe K bandpass is dominated by a narrow core (EW = 57+3-3 eV) at 6.4 keV consistent with neutral material. Using a physically motivated model, our analysis also reveals the presence of a broad iron Kα line (EW = 124+11-11 eV), most likely produced in the inner part of the accretion disc and blurred by general relativistic effects. This component is not immediately evident from the individual spectra, but is clearly present in the stacked residuals of all five observations, and has high statistical significance. This highlights the difficulty in identifying broad iron lines in active galactic nuclei, even in data with very high signal-to-noise ratio, as they are difficult to disentangle from the continuum. The data are consistent with the narrow and broad iron line components tracking the Compton Hump, but do not provide clear evidence that this is the case. An additional narrow Fe XXVI emission line at 6.94 keV is also seen, suggesting the presence of ionized material relatively distant from the central region. There is also a hint of variability, so the precise origin of this line remains unclear. © 2014 The Authors. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Royal Astronomical Society.