THE CHEMICAL PROPERTIES OF PG QUASARS

Metallicity is an important tracer of star formation in galaxy evolution. Based on the flux ratios of broad emission lines, AGN metallicity has shown a correlation with AGN luminosity. However, it is not clear what physical parameter drives the observed correlation. Using a sample 69 Palomar-Green QSOs at low-z (z<0.5), we determine BLR gas metallicity from emission line flux ratios, i.e., N V1240/C IV1549, (Si IV1398+O IV1402)/C IV1549 and N V1240/He II1640 based on the UV spectra from the HST and IUE archives. We compare BLR gas metallicity with various AGN properties, i.e., black hole mass, AGN luminosity and Eddington ratio, in order to investigate physical connection between metal enrichment and AGN activity. In contrast to high-z QSOs, which show the correlation between metallicity and black hole mass, we find that the metallicity of low-z QSOs correlates with Eddington ratio, but not with black hole mass, suggesting that metallicity enrichment mechanism is different between low-z and high-z.