Short time-scale AGN X-ray variability with EXOSAT: black hole mass and normalized variability amplitude

The old EXOSAT medium energy measurements of high-frequency (HF) active galactic nuclei (AGN) power spectral normalization are re-examined in the light of accurate black hole mass determinations which were not available when these data were first published by Green et al. It is found that the normalized variability amplitude (NVA), measured directly from the power spectrum, is proportional to M-beta, where beta similar to -0.54 +/- 0.08. As NVA is the square root of the power, these observations show that the normalization of the HF power spectrum for this sample of AGN varies very close to inversely with black hole mass. Almost the same value of beta is obtained whether the quasar 3C 273 is included in the sample or not, suggesting that the same process that drives X-ray variability in Seyfert galaxies applies also to 3C 273. These observations support the work of Gierlinski et al. who show that an almost exactly linear anticorrelation is required if the normalizations of the HF power spectra of AGN and X-ray binary systems are to scale similarly. These observations are also consistent with a number of studies showing that the short time-scale variance of AGN X-ray light curves varies approximately inversely with mass.