Аннотация
We report on the host properties of five X-ray luminous Active Galactic
Nuclei (AGN) identified at $3 < z < 5$ in the first epoch of imaging from the
Cosmic Evolution Early Release Science Survey (CEERS). Each galaxy has been
imaged with the James Webb Space Telescope (\jwst) Near-Infrared
Camera (NIRCam), which provides spatially resolved, rest-frame optical
morphologies at these redshifts. We also derive stellar masses and star
formation rates for each host galaxy by fitting its spectral energy
distribution using a combination of galaxy and AGN templates. The AGN hosts
have an average stellar mass of $log(M_*/M_ødot )= 11.0$,
making them among the most massive galaxies detected at this redshift range in
the current CEERS pointings, even after accounting for nuclear light from the
AGN. We find that three of the AGN hosts have spheroidal morphologies, one is a
bulge-dominated disk and one host is dominated by point-like emission. None are
found to show strong morphological disturbances that might indicate a recent
interaction or merger event. Notably, all four of the resolved hosts have
rest-frame optical colors consistent with a quenched or post-starburst stellar
population. The presence of AGN in passively evolving galaxies at $z>3$ is
significant because a rapid feedback mechanism is required in most
semi-analytic models and cosmological simulations to explain the growing
population of massive quiescent galaxies observed at these redshifts. Our
findings are in general agreement with this picture and show that AGN can
continue to inject energy into these systems after their star formation is
curtailed, possibly helping to maintain their quiescent state.
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