The most extreme high- z radio quasars in the eRASS:1 X-ray survey

Abstract

We present the selection and identification of high-z radio quasars from a combination of X-ray (eROSITA All-Sky Survey), optical/NIR (DECam Local Volume Exploration), and radio (Rapid ASKAP Continuum Survey) surveys. After building a sample of 68 new high-z quasar candidates, we performed follow-up spectroscopic observations on 46 sources, confirming 39 to have redshifts z > 3.5. For the subset of radio quasars at z > 4, the 14 new sources identified here represent an increase of ~65% in the known population of objects above the same flux limits in the same area. Using X-ray-to-optical relative intensity, we identified blazars in our sample, which we then used to compare the total number of z > 4, X-ray selected blazars to the predictions of a fractional IC/CMB model previously proposed in the literature. Overall we find a relatively good agreement, even considering the potential biases in the redshift distribution from the incompleteness of the spectroscopic follow-up and the blazar classification criteria. The sources presented in this work represent a sample well suited for investigating the evolution of the most extreme systems in the early Universe, including their relativistic jets and accretion properties.