The influence of AGN feedback on star formation in red spiral galaxies

TL;DR

The paper investigates how AGN feedback influences star formation in red and blue spiral galaxies within 115 low-redshift clusters. It employs a multi-wavelength approach, combining SDSS optical emission-line diagnostics (BPT, VO87, WHAN) with X-ray data from Chandra and XMM-Newton to identify AGN activity and star-formation states across 597 spirals. The authors find that red spirals frequently show AGN/LINER signatures in optical diagnostics (consistent with negative feedback and quenching), while blue spirals exhibit substantial X-ray activity and sometimes optically hidden AGN activity (suggesting possible positive feedback or coexistence with star formation). Overall, the results support a dual-mode AGN feedback scenario in cluster spirals and highlight the necessity of multi-wavelength AGN identification to fully understand galaxy evolution in dense environments.

Abstract

We investigated the influence of Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN) feedback on star formation in red spiral galaxies by analyzing a sample of 324 red and 273 blue face-on spirals selected from 115 low-redshift galaxy clusters. This multi-wavelength dataset combines optical emission line data from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey with X-ray fluxes from Chandra and XMM-Newton X-ray space telescopes. Using diagnostic emission line ratios, we constructed Baldwin-Phillips-Terlevich (BPT) diagrams, introduced in 1981 to classify galaxies based on nuclear activity. Our analysis reveals that most red spirals exhibit AGN or low-ionization nuclear emission-line region (LINER) signatures, based on optical data, as determined by their location in the BPT, Cid Fernandes, and Mazzolari diagrams. These results are consistent with the presence of negative feedback from AGNs quenching star formation. Conversely, X-ray analysis reveals that many blue spirals exhibit high X-ray luminosities and are situated in the AGN region of emission line ratio diagrams, suggesting that AGN-driven positive feedback may be enhancing star formation. Our findings support the hypothesis that AGN feedback plays a key role in the evolution of spiral galaxies, particularly in quenching star formation and driving the transition from blue to red spiral systems.

Figures (10)

• Figure 1: X-ray luminosity histogram distributions for blue (left panel) and red (right panel) cluster spiral galaxies.
• Figure 2: Standard BPT diagram for log ([O III]/$H\beta$) vs. log ([N II]/$H\alpha$). Solid curve and straight line are from Kauffmann2003, which separates AGN/Seyfert, star-forming, and LINER galaxies. Galaxies detected in the X-ray are depicted with asterisk symbols. The median 1$\sigma$ error bars are given in the lower-right corner of the figure.
• Figure 3: VO87 diagram using log ([O III]/$H\beta$) vs. log ([S II]/$H\alpha$). The black curve is from Kewley2001aKewley2001b, which separate the star-forming (SF) region from the AGN/Seyfert area. The straight line, from Kewley2006, depicts the demarcation line that separate AGN/Seyferts from LINER systems. Galaxies detected in the X-ray are represented by asterisk symbols. The median 1$\sigma$ error bars are given in the lower-right corner of the figure.
• Figure 4: VO87 diagram using log ([O III]/$H\beta$) vs. log ([O I]/$H\alpha$). The black curve is from Kewley2001aKewley2001b, which separate the star-forming (SF) region from the AGN/Seyfert area. The straight line, from Kewley2006, depicts the demarcation line that separate AGN/Seyferts from LINER systems. Galaxies detected in the X-ray are represented by asterisk symbols. The median 1$\sigma$ error bars are given in the lower-right corner of the figure.
• Figure 5: Mazzolari diagram Mazzolari2024 plotting log ([O III]/$H\gamma$) vs. log ([O III]/[O II]). Straight line segments are from Mazzolari2024, which separates galaxies into “AGN/Seyfert-only” and “SF or AGN/Seyfert” regions. Galaxies detected in the X-ray are represented by asterisk symbols. The median 1$\sigma$ error bars are given in the lower-right corner of the figure.