The narrow line region of active galaxies

Abstract

This thesis presents an imaging and spectroscopic study of the narrow-line region (NLR) in active galactic nuclei (AGNs). We find a correlation between size and luminosity of the NLR with different slopes for type-1 and type-2 AGNs which can be explained by the observers viewing angle and a receding torus. The radial properties of the NLR gas, such as reddening, electron density, ionization parameter, and velocity field are analyzed. We derive pure emission-line spectra and use the resulting absorption-line free ratios for spatially resolved spectral diagnostics. We find a transition between the AGN-excited NLR and the surrounding star-forming regions, allowing us to determine the NLR size independent of stellar contamination. The electron density and ionization parameter decrease with radius indicating that the NLR is photoionized by the central source only.The velocity fields suggest a disky NLR gas distribution with the torus axis lying in the galaxy disk.