Abstract: A key component of AGN feedback is the injection of kinetic energy from radio jets. However, there’s a fundamental lack of understanding of why quasars, otherwise very similar, have such diverse radio jet powers and, therefore, the impact of AGN jets. Using large samples from LoTSS DR2 coupled with a Bayesian parametric model, we can statistically separate jet from host galaxy radio emission, quantify the evolution of quasar jet power with properties including colour, black hole mass, and environment, and investigate the powering mechanism of radio jets across all energy scales. Our model reveals that the radio excess in red quasars is due to an enhancement in AGN-related emission with weak or intermediate radio power. We show that the traditional radio-loud/quiet quasar classification fails to reflect the physical origin of radio emissions in each population. Instead, our model allows for redefining radio quasar populations based on jet dominance, which provides a coherent picture of how black hole mass impacts AGN jets. We found a full range of jet powers is seen at all black hole masses, while quasars hosting the most massive black holes show an enhancement in radio emission due to higher prevalence of powerful jets. We will show how the production of powerful jets is linked to the large-scale clustering and accretion modes of quasars. The combination of these results sets tight observational constraints on the launching mechanism of powerful radio jets in massive quasars. Our methodology holds great potential in revealing the radio emission mechanisms in fainter radio quasars under the extra parameter space to be explored with SKA.
