International audienceABSTRACT We present results from high signal-to-noise optical spectropolarimetric observations of the Seyfert 1 galaxies NGC 3783 and Mrk 509 in the 3500–7000 Å range. We find complex structure in the polarized emission for both objects. In particular, Position Angle (PA) changes across the Balmer lines show a distinctive ‘M’-shaped profile that had not been observed in this detail before, but could represent a common trait in Seyfert 1 galaxies. In fact, while this shape is observed in all Balmer lines in NGC 3783, Mrk 509 transitions into a ‘M’-shaped PA profile for higher transitions lines. We have modelled the observed profiles using the STOKES radiative transfer code and assuming that the scattering region is co-s...
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