Reverberation Mapping of High-Redshift, High-Luminosity Quasars

Abstract

We present preliminary results from a reverberation mapping program to measure the Broad Line Region size in high-redshift, high-luminosity quasars. The observations are carried out at the Hobby-Eberly Telescope and at the Wise Observatory. The data cover 8 yr of photometric monitoring of 11 quasars, and 2.5 yr of spectrophotometric monitoring of 7 of these sources. Thus far we detected continuum variations but no line variations. We find that the continua of the high-luminosity quasars have smaller variability amplitudes and longer variability timescales compared with low-luminosity AGNs.