GA-NIFS: High number of dual active galactic nuclei at z~3

Understand

Merger events can trigger gas accretion onto supermassive black holes (SMBHs) located at the centre of galaxies, and form close pairs of AGN.

• The fraction of AGN in pairs offers critical insights into the dynamics of galaxy interactions, SMBH growth, and their co-evolution with host galaxies.
• However, the identification of dual AGN is difficult, as it requires high-quality spatial and spectral data; hence, only very few pairs have been found in the distant Universe so far.
• This study aims to provide a first observational estimate of the fraction of dual AGN at 2<z<6 by analysing a sample of 16 AGN observed with JWST/NIRSpec IFS, as part of the GA-NIFS survey.