No abstract

We examine the detailed physics of the feedback mechanism by relativistic AGN jets interacting with a two-phase fractal interstellar medium in the kpc-scale core of galaxies using 29 3D grid-based hydrodynamical simulations. The feedback efficiency, as measured by the amount of cloud-dispersal generated by the jet-ISM interactions, is sensitive to the maximum size of clouds in the fractal cloud distribution but not to their volume filling factor. Feedback ceases to be efficient for Eddington ratios P jet /L edd 10 −4 , although systems with large cloud complexes 50 pc require jets of Eddington ratio in excess of 10 −2 to disperse the clouds appreciably. Based on measurements of the bubble expansion rates in our simulations we argue that sub-grid AGN prescriptions resulting in negative feedback in cosmological simulations without a multi-phase treatment of the ISM are good approximations if the volume filling factor of warm phase material is less than 0.1 and the cloud complexes are smaller than ∼ 25 pc. We find that the acceleration of the dense embedded clouds is provided by the ram pressure of the high velocity flow through the porous channels of the warm phase, flow that has fully entrained the shocked hot-phase gas it has swept up, and is additionally mass-loaded by ablated cloud material. This mechanism transfers 10% to 40% of the jet energy to the cold and warm gas, accelerating it within a few 10 to 100 Myr to velocities that match those observed in a range of high and low redshift radio galaxies hosting powerful radio jets.

We present the results of three dimensional relativistic hydrodynamic simulations of interaction of AGN jets with a dense turbulent two-phase interstellar medium, which would be typical of high redshift galaxies. We describe the effect of the jet on the evolution of the density of the turbulent ISM. The jet driven energy bubble affects the gas to distances up to several kiloparsecs from the injection region. The shocks resulting from such interactions create a multi-phase ISM and radial outflows. One of the striking result of this work is that low power jets (P jet < ∼ 10 43 erg s −1 ) although less efficient in accelerating clouds, are trapped in the ISM for a longer time and hence affect the ISM over a larger volume. Jets of higher power drill through with relative ease. Although the relativistic jets launch strong outflows, there is little net mass ejection to very large distances, supporting a galactic fountain scenario for local feedback.

We study the interactions of a relativistic jet with a dense turbulent gaseous disk of radius ∼ 2 kpc. We have performed a suite of simulations with different mean density, jet power and orientation. Our results show that: A) the relativistic jet couples strongly with the gas in the inner kpc, creating a cavity and launching outflows. B) The high pressure bubble inflated by the jet and its back-flow compresses the disk at the outer edges, driving inflows within the disk. C) Jets inclined towards the disk affect the disk more and launch sub-relativistic, wide-angle outflows along the minor axis. D) Shocks driven directly by the jet and the jet-driven energy bubble raise the velocity dispersion throughout the disk by several times its initial value. E) Compression by the jet-driven shocks can enhance the star formation rate in the disk, especially in a ring-like geometry close to the axis. However, enhanced turbulent dispersion in the disk also leads to quenching of star formation. Whether positive or negative feedback dominates depends on jet power, ISM density, jet orientation with respect to the disc, and the time-scale under consideration. Qualitatively, our simulations compare favourably with kinematic and morphological signatures of several observed galaxies such as NGC 1052, NGC 3079, 3C 326 and 3C 293.