X-ray variability and spectral scaling: a measure of BLR sizes in AGN

Abstract

We apply a new method of determination of the size of the broad emission-line region (BLR) in active galactic nuclei. This method relates the radius of the broad-line region of AGN to the soft X-ray luminosity and spectral index. Comparing the BLR distances calculated from our photoionization scaling model to the BLR distances determined by reverberation mapping shows that the scaling law agrees with the $R\sim L^{1/2}$ empirical relation. We investigate a complimentary method of estimating the BLR distance - based on the Keplerian broadening of the emission lines and the central mass estimated from X-ray variability.