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Supermassive binary black holes in blazars
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 12 May 2006
Abstract
Low-frequency ($f \leq 10^{-6}$ Hz) quasi-periodic variability observed from radioloud, jet-emitting Active Galactic Nuclei (AGNs) can provide substantial inductive support for the presence of close ($d \lesssim 0.1$ pc) supermassive binary black holes in their centers. Such periodic variability may arise, for example, due to differential Doppler boosting along helical jet paths driven by the orbital motion or jet precession. If the jet path is non-ballistic, travel time effects can lead to a strong reduction of the observable period by up to a factor of $\gamma_b^{-2}$. Here we suggest a binary model where the optical periodicity with timescale of several years is related to accretion disk interactions, radio periodicity to Newtonian jet precession and periodicities in the high energy bands to the orbital motion of the jet. We analyze the explanatory potential of such a framework and comment on the possible origin of periodicities in AO 0235+16.
- Type
- Contributed Papers
- Information
- Proceedings of the International Astronomical Union , Volume 1 , Symposium S230: Populations of High Energy Sources in Galaxies , August 2005 , pp. 239 - 240
- Copyright
- 2006 International Astronomical Union