The subarcsecond mid-infrared view of local active galactic nuclei: III.
  Polar dust emission
  Recent mid-infrared (MIR) interferometric observations showed in few active
galactic nuclei (AGN) that the bulk of the infrared emission originates from
the polar region above the putative torus, where only little dust should be
present. Here, we investigate whether such strong polar dust emission is common
in AGN. Out of 149 Seyferts in the MIR atlas of local AGN (Asmus et al.), 21
show extended MIR emission on single dish images. In 18 objects, the extended
MIR emission aligns with the system axis position angle, established by [OIII],
radio, polarisation and maser based position angle measurements. The relative
amount of resolved MIR emission is at least 40 per cent and scales with the
[OIV] fluxes implying a strong connection between the extended continuum and
[OIV] emitters. These results together with the radio-quiet nature of the
Seyferts support the scenario that the bulk of MIR emission is emitted by dust
in the polar region and not by the torus, which would demand a new paradigm for
the infrared emission structure in AGN. The current low detection rate of polar
dust in the AGN of the MIR atlas is explained by the lack of sufficient high
quality MIR data and the requirement for the orientation, NLR strength and
distance of the AGN. The James-Webb Space Telescope will enable much deeper
nuclear MIR studies with comparable angular resolution, allowing us to resolve
the polar emission and surroundings in most of the nearby AGN.
