Large-scale distribution of quasars in deep pencil-beam surveys

We have used integral two-point spatial correlation function and its second derivative to analyze the distribution of quasars in three very deep surveys published in the literature. Statistically significant (∼ 2 − 3σ) correlations were found at scales of ∼ 50 − 100h Mpc in all of the analyzed surveys. We have used the friend-of-friend cluster analysis to show that these correlations can be explained by the presence of relatively small quasar clusters (3 − 6 objects) which may possibly belong to larger structures such as Large Quasar Groups found in the bigger surveys. The sizes of these clusters along the redshift direction and distances between them are similar to those for structures found recently in studies of CIV absorption systems. These results present further evidence for the existence of large-scale structures at redshifts z ∼ 1− 2.