A blurred reflection interpretation for the intermediate flux state in Mrk 335

Abstract

As part of a long-term monitoring campaign of Mrk 335, deep XMM–Newton observations catch the narrow-line Seyfert 1 galaxy (NLS1) in a complex, intermediate flux interval as the active galaxy is transiting from low to high flux. Other works on these same data examined the general behaviour of the NLS1 and the conditions of its warm absorber. The analysis presented here demonstrates the X-ray continuum and timing properties can be described in a self-consistent manner adopting a blurred reflection model without any need to invoke partial covering. The rapid spectral variability appears to be driven by changes in the shape of the primary emitter that is illuminating the inner accretion disc around a rapidly spinning black hole (a > 0.7). While light bending is certainly prominent, the rather constant emissivity profile and break radius obtained in our spectral fitting suggest that the blurring parameters do not change as would be expected if the primary source varies its distance from the disc. Instead changes could be intrinsic to the power-law component. One possibility is that material in an unresolved jet above the disc falls to combine with material at the base of the jet producing the changes in the primary emitter (spectral slope and flux) without changing its distance from the disc.