Speaker
Description
Deep X-ray observations provide unprecedented insights into the physical properties and evolution of the accreting SMBH population in the early universe. I will present recent results on the bulk of the $z>3$ AGN population, constituted by low- and moderate-luminosity AGN, based on the deepest Chandra surveys to date. I will focus in particular on the AGN X-ray luminosity function, which carries information about the mechanisms responsible for the formation of SMBHs and the onset of the BH-galaxy co-evolution, and on the evolution of the obscured AGN fraction from the local Universe to $z>3$. I will also discuss the X-ray properties of the population of optically selected luminous QSOs at $z>6$, exploiting both archival data (15 objects) and new Chandra observations (10 objects). In particular, X-ray photometric analysis of one of our new targets suggests that it is the first heavily obscured (log$N_H\approx24$) QSO candidate known at $z>6$. Finally, I will discuss how future X-ray observatories (Athena, Lynx, AXIS) will dramatically improve our knowledge of SMBH formation and early growth at $z\approx6-15$.
| Affiliation | PUC (Chile), CASSACA (China) |
|---|---|
| Topic | Active Galactic Nuclei: accretion physics and evolution across cosmic time |
