SIZING UP PARTIALLY DEPLETED GALAXY CORES

We have modeled the inner surface brightness profiles of 39 alleged core galaxies with the core-Sersic model, and provide new physical parameters for the largest ever sample of core galaxies fit with this model. When present, additional nuclear components were simultaneously modeled and the typical root-mean-square scatter of the fits (out to similar to 10 '') is 0.02 mag arcsec(-2). Model-independent estimates of each core's break radius are shown to agree with those from the core-Sersic model, and a comparison with the Nuker model is provided. We found an absence of cores in what amounts to 18% of the sample, which are reclassified here as Sersic galaxies with low values of n (less than or similar to 4) and thus shallow inner profile slopes. In general, galaxies with n < 3 and sigma < 183 km s(-1) do not have depleted cores. We derive updated relations between core-Sersic break radii, their associated surface brightness, bulge luminosity, central velocity dispersion, and predicted black hole mass for galaxies with depleted cores. With the possible exception of NGC 584, we confirm that the inner negative logarithmic profile slopes gamma are less than or similar to 0.3 for the core galaxies, and 0 > gamma > -0.1 for six of these. Finally, the central stellar mass deficits are found to have values typically within a factor of four of the expected central black hole mass.