A simulation-based analytic model of radio galaxies II: self-consistent radiative losses

Abstract

The evolution of the radio properties of high-redshift radio-luminous active galactic nuclei is well known to be strongly affected by inverse-Compton losses which increase rapidly at higher redshifts due to the higher energy density in the cosmic microwave background radiation. Dynamical models of these sources, however, generally neglect the effects of radiative losses on the dynamics and energetics of the sources themselves. In the framework of an analytical model I developed in a previous paper, I show that the assumption that these losses can be neglected becomes unsafe at high redshifts. The effects on the source dynamics and energetics can result in significantly lower predicted luminosities for high-redshift sources in both radio (synchrotron) and X-ray (inverse-Compton) bands. Modelling of the population of these powerful sources needs to take account of these results in order to infer jet powers at high redshift, and also to make a correct prediction of the number of sources that may be available to provide a background for studies of the 21-cm forest.