论文标题
部分可观测时空混沌系统的无模型预测
A physical model for the UV/optical power spectra of AGN
论文作者
论文摘要
储层计算是预测湍流的有力工具,其简单的架构具有处理大型系统的计算效率。然而,其实现通常需要完整的状态向量测量和系统非线性知识。我们使用非线性投影函数将系统测量扩展到高维空间,然后将其输入到储层中以获得预测。我们展示了这种储层计算网络在时空混沌系统上的应用,该系统模拟了湍流的若干特征。我们表明,使用径向基函数作为非线性投影器,即使只有部分观测并且不知道控制方程,也能稳健地捕捉复杂的系统非线性。最后,我们表明,当测量稀疏、不完整且带有噪声,甚至控制方程变得不准确时,我们的网络仍然可以产生相当准确的预测,从而为实际湍流系统的无模型预测铺平了道路。
The UV/optical variability of AGN has long been thought to be driven by the X-ray illumination of the accretion disk. However, recent multi-wavelength campaigns of nearby Seyfert galaxies seem to challenge this paradigm, with an apparent discrepancy between observations and the underlying theory. In order to further probe the connection between the UV/optical and X-ray variability in AGN we developed a physical model to reproduce the UV/optical power spectra (PSDs) of AGN assuming the thermal reprocessing of the X-rays in the disk. This model offers a novel way to probe the innermost regions of AGN. We use our model to study the variability of NGC 5548 and we infer that the X-ray and UV/optical PSDs as well as the interband UV/optical time lags are all well reproduced. We also derive constraints on the source physical parameters, such as the X-ray corona height and the accretion rate. Our results suggest that X-ray disk reprocessing accounts for the full variability properties of this AGN, within the considered time scales. Using earlier data of NGC 5548, we also show that our model can reproduce its PSD in different epochs, establishing the feasibility of using PSD modelling to investigate the time evolution of a source.