The X-Ray Luminosity Function Evolution of Quasars and the Correlation between the X-Ray and Ultraviolet Luminosities

Abstract

We explore the evolution of the X-ray luminosity function of quasars and the intrinsic correlation between the X-ray and 2500 Å ultraviolet luminosities, utilizing techniques verified in previous works and a sample of over 4000 quasars detected with Chandra and XMM-Newton in the range 0 < z < 5. We find that quasars have undergone significantly less evolution with redshift in their total X-ray luminosity than in other wave bands. We then determine that the best-fit intrinsic power-law correlation between the X-ray and ultraviolet luminosities, of the form L X ′ ∝ ( L UV ′ ) γ , is γ = 0.28 ± 0.03, and we derive the luminosity function and density evolution in the X-ray band. We discuss the implications of these results for models of quasar systems.