C-GOALS. II. Chandra observations of the lower luminosity sample of nearby luminous infrared galaxies in GOALS
Sanders, D. B.; Inami, H.; Armus, L.; Iwasawa, K.; Charmandaris, V.; Privon, G. C.; Evans, A. S.; Díaz-Santos, T.; U, V.; Barcos-Muñoz, L.; Linden, S. T.; Yoon, I.; Howell, J. H.; Ricci, C.; Torres-Albà, N.; Chu, J. K.; Medling, A. M.
Spain, Chile, Greece, China, United States, France, Australia
Abstract
We analyze Chandra X-ray observatory data for a sample of 63 luminous infrared galaxies (LIRGs), sampling the lower-infrared luminosity range of the Great Observatories All-Sky LIRG survey (GOALS), which includes the most luminous infrared selected galaxies in the local Universe. X-rays are detected for 84 individual galaxies within the 63 systems, for which arcsecond resolution X-ray images, fluxes, infrared and X-ray luminosities, spectra and radial profiles are presented. Using X-ray and mid-infrared (MIR) selection criteria, we find AGN in (31 ± 5)% of the galaxy sample, compared to the (38 ± 6)% previously found for GOALS galaxies with higher infrared luminosities (C-GOALS I). Using MIR data, we find that (59 ± 9)% of the X-ray selected AGN in the full C-GOALS sample do not contribute significantly to the bolometric luminosity of the host galaxy. Dual AGN are detected in two systems, implying a dual AGN fraction in systems that contain at least one AGN of (29 ± 14)%, compared to the (11 ± 10)% found for the C-GOALS I sample. Through analysis of radial profiles, we derive that most sources, and almost all AGN, in the sample are compact, with half of the soft X-ray emission generated within the inner ∼1 kpc. For most galaxies, the soft X-ray sizes of the sources are comparable to those of the MIR emission. We also find that the hard X-ray faintness previously reported for the bright C-GOALS I sources is also observed in the brightest LIRGs within the sample, with LFIR > 8 × 1010 L⊙.