Heino Falcke - AGN-Vorlesung
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Lecture Notes: Physics of Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN) and Black Holes
In this lecture some basic physical processes important for the
physics of active galactic nuclei (AGN) and black holes are
presented. There will be a general introduction to the classification
and observation of active galaxies and a discussion of indivdual
elements characterizing an AGN, such as black holes, relativistic
jets, and accretion disks.
This page contains some old lecture notes as well as a few recent ppt
updates. It is not particularly well maintained and no longer intended
for students (who use the intranet). I kept it since I noticed that a
few colleagues used bits and pieces of the lecture once in a while for
designing their own course. Feel free to do so and let me know if you
have made useful updates that others could benefit from. I have, for
example, here incorporated ppt slides developed by Leon Koopmans
(Groningen), inspired in part by my lecture, which I then adapted
again for my own use.
Vorlesung: Physik von Aktiven Galaktischen Kernen (AGN) und schwarzen Löchern
In dieser Vorlesung stelle ich einige grundlegende astrophysikalische
Prozesse vor, die zum Verständnis der Physik aktiver galaktischer Kerne
(engl.: AGN) und schwarzer Löcher wichtig sind. Das Standardmodell für
AGN besteht aus einem zentralen schwarzen Loch, das durch eine
Akkretionsscheibe gefüttert wird und in der Nähe des Ereignishorizonts
einen relativistischen Plasmajet produziert. Scheibe und Jet sind
verantwortlich für ein breites Emissionsspektrum von Radiowellenlängen
bis hin zum Gamma-Bereich. Dabei scheint die Physik von super-schweren
schwarzen Löchern in den Zentren von Galaxien und von stellaren
schwarzen Löchern in unserer Milchstrasse vergleichbar zu sein. Ein
Verständnis von AGN und schwarzen Löchern ist eine wichtige Grundlage
für eine grosse Schnittmenge von Gebieten aus Astronomie und Physik
(z.B. Astroteilchenphysik, Gravitationsphysik, Kosmologie,
Hochenergie- und Radioastronomie etc.).
Themen, die in der Vorlesung behandelt werden, sind unter anderem:
Beobachtung und Klassen von AGN, Synchrotron-Strahlung,
Schock-Beschleunigung, relativistische Jets, Akkretionsscheiben,
Röntgen-Doppelsterne, Schwarze Löcher, Galaktisches Zentrum,
"Unified-Scheme of AGN", ggf. auch radioastronomische Messtechnik für
AGN (VLBI) mit Besuch von Labor und Teleskop.
In the following I make some of the lecture notes available for my
students. Please note that the scripts are still evolving and may not
be completely up-to-date and error-free. Also, not all lectures are
already available. Please attend the lecture to get the full and updated
story.
- ``Introduction to AGN'' [PS-file (6.6 Mb), gzipped PS-file, PPT from 2008]
- ``Taxonomy'' [PPT from 2008]
- ``Relativistic Jets and Compact Radio Cores (2)'' [PS-file (9.5 Mb), gzipped PS-file, English version of Part II of the lecture PS-file, PPT from 2008]
- ``Synchrotron Radiation'' [PS-file (1.5 Mb), gzipped PS-file]
- ``Shock Acceleration'' [PS-file (1.1 Mb), gzipped PS-file]
- ``Black Hole Basics'' [PS-file (21.6 Mb), gzipped PS-file, PPT from 2008]
- ``Standard Accretion Disks'' [PS-file (2.2 Mb), gzipped PS-file]
- ``Advection-Dominated Accretion Flows'' [PS-file (2.1 Mb), gzipped PS-file]
- ``The Emission-Line Region of AGN'' [PS-file (9.5 Mb), gzipped PS-file, PPT from 2008]
- ``A unified view of AGN'' [PS-file (18 Mb), gzipped PS-file]
The source code of the lectures is also available.
Recommended Literature
- ``An Introduction to Active Galactic Nuclei'', Bradley
M. Peterson, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge (useful lecture notes)
- ``Active Galactic Nuclei'', Ian Robson, John Wiley & Sons,
Chichester (more basic introduction but wider scope)
- ``Active Galactic Nuclei - From the Central Black Hole to the Galactic Environment'', Julian Krolik, Princeton Series in Astrophysics, Princeton, New Jersey (in-depth textbook for advanced students)
For further informations contact Heino Falcke.
The image at the top is from S. Britzen