Aims. Measurements of the size of dust continuum emission are an important tool for constraining the spatial extent of star formation, and hence the buildup of stellar mass. Compact dust emission has ...generally been observed at cosmic noon ( z ∼ 2 − 3). However, at earlier epochs, toward the end of the reionization ( z ∼ 4 − 6), only the sizes of a handful of infrared (IR) bright galaxies have been measured. In this work, we derive the dust emission sizes of main-sequence (MS) galaxies at z ∼ 5 from the ALPINE survey. Methods. We measured the dust effective radius, r e, FIR , in the uv -plane in Band 7 of ALMA for seven ALPINE galaxies with resolved emission and we compared it with rest-frame ultraviolet (UV) and CII158 μm measurements. We studied the r e, FIR − L IR scaling relation by considering our dust size measurements and all the data in the literature at z ∼ 4 − 6. Finally, we compared our size measurements with predictions from simulations. Results. The dust emission in the selected ALPINE galaxies is rather extended ( r e, FIR ∼ 1.5 − 3 kpc), similar to CII158 μm but a factor of ∼2 larger than the rest-frame UV emission. Putting together all the measurements at z ∼ 5, spanning two decades in luminosity from L IR ∼ 10 11 L ⊙ to L IR ∼ 10 13 L ⊙ , the data highlight a steeply increasing trend of the r e, FIR − L IR relation at L IR < 10 12 L ⊙ , followed by a downturn and a decreasing trend at brighter luminosities. Finally, simulations that extend up to the stellar masses of the ALPINE galaxies considered in the present work predict a subset of galaxies (∼25% at 10 10 M ⊙ < M ⋆ < 10 11 M ⊙ ) with sizes as large as those measured.
Aims. We exploit deep observations of the GOODS-N field taken with PACS, the Photodetector Array Camera and Spectrometer, onboard of Herschel, as part of the PACS evolutionary probe guaranteed time ...(PEP), to study the link between star formation and stellar mass in galaxies to z ~ 2. Methods. Starting from a stellar mass – selected sample of ~4500 galaxies with mag4.5 µm < 23.0 (AB), we identify ~350 objects with a PACS detection at 100 or 160 ~1500 with only Spitzer 24 μm counterpart. Stellar masses and total IR luminosities (LIR) are estimated by fitting the spectral energy distributions (SEDs). Results. Consistently with other Herschel results, we find that LIR based only on 24 μm data is overestimated by a median factor ~1.8 at z ~ 2, whereas it is underestimated (with our approach) up to a factor ~1.6 at 0.5 < z < 1.0. We then exploit this calibration to correct LIR based on the MIPS/Spitzer fluxes. These results clearly show how Herschel is fundamental to constrain LIR, and hence the star formation rate (SFR), of high redshift galaxies. Using the galaxies detected with PACS (and/or MIPS), we investigate the existence and evolution of the relations between the SFR, the specific star formation rate (SSFR=SFR/mass) and the stellar mass. Moreover, in order to avoid selection effects, we also repeat this study through a stacking analysis on the PACS images to fully exploit the far-IR information also for the Herschel and Spitzer undetected subsamples. We find that the SSFR-mass relation steepens with redshift, being almost flat at z < 1.0 and reaching a slope of α = -0.50+0.13-0.16 at z ~ 2, at odds with recent works based on radio-stacking analysis at the same redshift. The mean SSFR of galaxies increases with redshift, by a factor ~15 for massive M > 1011 $M_{\odot}$ galaxies from z = 0 to z = 2, and seems to flatten at z > 1.5 in this mass range. Moreover, the most massive galaxies have the lowest SSFR at any z, implying that they have formed their stars earlier and more rapidly than their low mass counterparts (downsizing).
Context. The most striking feature of the cosmic star formation history (CSFH) of the Universe is a dramatic drop in the star formation (SF) activity after z ~ 1. Aims. In this work we investigate ...whether the very same process of assembly and growth of structures is one of the major drivers of the observed decline in the Universe’s SF activity. Methods. We study the contribution to the CSFH of galaxies in halos of different masses. This is done by studying the total SF rate-halo mass-redshift plane from redshift 0 to redshift ~1.6 in a sample of 57 groups and clusters by using the deepest available mid- and far-infrared surveys conducted with Spitzer MIPS and Herschel PACS and SPIRE, on blank (ECDFS, CDFN, and the COSMOS) and cluster fields. Results. Our results show that low mass groups (Mhalo ~ 6 × 1012−6 × 1013 M⊙) provide a 60−80% contribution to the CSFH at z ~ 1. This contribution has declined faster than the CSFH in the past 8 billion years to less than 10% at z < 0.3, where the overall SF activity is sustained by lower mass halos. More massive systems (Mhalo > 6 × 1013 M⊙) provide only a marginal contribution (<10%) at any epoch. A simplified abundance-matching method shows that the large contribution of low mass groups at z ~ 1 is due to a large fraction (>50%) of very massive, highly star-forming main sequence galaxies. Below z ~ 1 a quenching process must take place in massive halos to cause the observed faster suppression of their SF activity. Such a process must be a slow one, though, since most of the models implementing a rapid quenching of the SF activity in accreting satellites significantly underpredict the observed SF level in massive halos at any redshift. This would rule out short time-scale mechanisms such as ram pressure stripping. Instead, starvation or the satellite’s transition from cold to hot accretion would provide a quenching timescale of 1 to few Gyr that is more consistent with the observations. Conclusions. Our results suggest a scenario in which, owing to the structure formation process, more and more galaxies experience the group environment and the associated quenching process in the past 8 billion years. This leads to the progressive suppression of their SF activity so that it shapes the CSFH below z ~ 1.
Recent works have suggested that selection criteria based on mid-IR properties, i.e. extreme colors and bright flux levels, can be used to reveal a population of dust-enshrouded, extremely-luminous ...quasars at $z \sim 1$–2. However, the X-ray spectral properties of these intriguing objects still remain largely unexplored. We have performed an X-ray study of a large sample of bright mid-IR ($F_{24~\mu {\rm m}} > 1.3$ mJy) galaxies showing an extreme MIR/Optical flux ratio ($F_{24~\mu {\rm m}}$/$F_{\rm R}>2000$) in order to confirm the presence of a luminous active nucleus in these very red objects. Sampling of a large area is required to pick up objects at the highest luminosities given their low surface density. Accordingly, we have applied our selection criteria to an area of ~6 deg2 covered by XMM-Newton/Chandra observations within the ~50 deg2 SWIRE survey, resulting in a final sample of 44 objects. The vast majority of the source redshifts, both spectroscopic and photometric, are in the range $0.7 \la~z \la~2.5$. The X-ray coverage of the sample is highly inhomogeneous (from snap-shot 5 ks Chandra observations to medium-deep XMM-Newton exposures of 70 ks) and, consequently, a sizable fraction of them (≈43%) remains undetected in the 0.5–10 keV band. Using spectral or hardness information we were able to estimate the value of the absorbing column density in 23 sources. 95% of them are consistent with being obscured by neutral gas with an intrinsic column density of NH ≥ 1022 cm-2. Remarkably, we also find that ~55% of these sources can be classified as type 2 quasars on the basis of their absorption properties and X-ray luminosity. Moreover, most of the X-ray undetected sources show extreme mid-IR colors, consistent with being luminous AGN-powered objects, suggesting they might host heavily obscured (possibly Compton-thick) quasars in X-rays. This demonstrates that our selection criteria applied to a wide area survey is very efficient in finding a large number of type 2 quasars at $z \ga 1$. The existence of this class of very powerful, obscured quasars at high z could have important implications in the context of the formation and cosmological evolution of accreting supermassive black holes and their host galaxies.
Context. There is now a large consensus that the current epoch of the cosmic star formation history (CSFH) is dominated by low mass galaxies while the most active phase, between redshifts 1 and 2, is ...dominated by more massive galaxies, which evolve more quickly. Aims. Massive galaxies tend to inhabit very massive haloes, such as galaxy groups and clusters. We aim to understand whether the observed “galaxy downsizing” could be interpreted as a “halo downsizing”, whereas the most massive haloes, and their galaxy populations, evolve more rapidly than the haloes with lower mass. Methods. We studied the contribution to the CSFH of galaxies inhabiting group-sized haloes. This is done through the study of the evolution of the infra-red (IR) luminosity function of group galaxies from redshift 0 to redshift ~1.6. We used a sample of 39 X-ray-selected groups in the Extended Chandra Deep Field South (ECDFS), the Chandra Deep Field North (CDFN), and the COSMOS field, where the deepest available mid- and far-IR surveys have been conducted with Spitzer MIPS and with the Photodetector Array Camera and Spectrometer (PACS) on board the Herschel satellite. Results. Groups at low redshift lack the brightest, rarest, and most star forming IR-emitting galaxies observed in the field. Their IR-emitting galaxies contribute ≤10% of the comoving volume density of the whole IR galaxy population in the local Universe. At redshift ≳1, the most IR-luminous galaxies (LIRGs and ULIRGs) are mainly located in groups, and this is consistent with a reversal of the star formation rate (SFR) vs. density anti-correlation observed in the nearby Universe. At these redshifts, group galaxies contribute 60–80% of the CSFH, i.e. much more than at lower redshifts. Below z ~ 1, the comoving number and SFR densities of IR-emitting galaxies in groups decline significantly faster than those of all IR-emitting galaxies. Conclusions. Our results are consistent with a “halo downsizing” scenario and highlight the significant role of “environment” quenching in shaping the CSFH.
Highly obscured active galactic nuclei (AGN) are common in nearby galaxies, but are difficult to observe beyond the local Universe, where they are expected to significantly contribute to the black ...hole accretion rate density. Furthermore, Compton-thick (CT) absorbers (NH ≳ 1024 cm-2) suppress even the hard X-ray (2−10 keV) AGN nuclear emission, and therefore the column density distribution above 1024 cm-2 is largely unknown. We present the identification and multi-wavelength properties of a heavily obscured (NH ≳ 1025 cm-2), intrinsically luminous (L2−10 > 1044 erg s-1) AGN at z = 0.353 in the COSMOS field. Several independent indicators, such as the shape of the X-ray spectrum, the decomposition of the spectral energy distribution and X-ray/NeV and X-ray/6 μm luminosity ratios, agree on the fact that the nuclear emission must be suppressed by a ≳1025 cm-2 column density. The host galaxy properties show that this highly obscured AGN is hosted in a massive star-forming galaxy, showing a barred morphology, which is known to correlate with the presence of CT absorbers. Finally, asymmetric and blueshifted components in several optical high-ionization emission lines indicate the presence of a galactic outflow, possibly driven by the intense AGN activity (LBol/LEdd = 0.3−0.5). Such highly obscured, highly accreting AGN are intrinsically very rare at low redshift, whereas they are expected to be much more common at the peak of the star formation and BH accretion history, at z ~ 2−3. We demonstrate that a fully multi-wavelength approach can recover a sizable sample of such peculiar sources in large and deep surveys such as COSMOS.
ABSTRACT We report the detection of C ii λ158 $\mu$m emission from a system of three closely separated sources in the Cosmic Evolution Survey (COSMOS) field at z ∼ 4.56 , as part of the Atacama Large ...Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) Large Program to INvestigate C ii at Early times (ALPINE). The two most luminous sources are closely associated, both spatially (1.6 arcsec ∼ 11 kpc) and in velocity (∼100 km s−1), while the third source is slightly more distant (2.8 arcsec ∼ 18 kpc, ∼300 km s−1). The second most luminous source features a slight velocity gradient, while no significant velocity gradient is seen in the other two sources. Using the observed C ii luminosities, we derive a total log$_{10}(\rm SFR_{C\,{\small II}}\, M_{\odot }\, yr^{-1})=2.8\pm 0.2$, which may be split into contributions of 59, 31, and 10 per cent from the central, east, and west sources, respectively. Comparison of these C ii detections to recent zoom-in cosmological simulations suggests an ongoing major merger. We are thus witnessing a system in a major phase of mass build-up by merging, including an ongoing major merger and an upcoming minor merger, which is expected to end up in a single massive galaxy by z ∼ 2.5.
The Herschel Space Observatory enables us to accurately measure the bolometric output of starburst galaxies and active galactic nuclei (AGN) by directly sampling the peak of their far-infrared (IR) ...emission. Here we examine whether the spectral energy distribution (SED) and dust temperature of galaxies have strongly evolved over the last 80% of the age of the Universe. We discuss possible consequences for the determination of star-formation rates (SFR) and any evidence for a major change in their star-formation properties. We use Herschel deep extragalactic surveys from 100 to 500 μm to compute total IR luminosities in galaxies down to the faintest levels, using PACS and SPIRE in the GOODS-North field (PEP and HerMES key programs). An extension to fainter luminosities is done by stacking images on 24 μm prior positions. We show that measurements in the SPIRE bands can be used below the statistical confusion limit if information at higher spatial resolution is used, e.g. at 24 μm, to identify “isolated” galaxies whose flux is not boosted by bright neighbors. Below z ~ 1.5, mid-IR extrapolations are correct for star-forming galaxies with a dispersion of only 40% (0.15 dex), therefore similar to z ~ 0 galaxies, over three decades in luminosity below the regime of ultra-luminous IR galaxies (ULIRGs, LIR ≥ 1012 $L_{\sun}$). This narrow distribution is puzzling when considering the range of physical processes that could have affected the SED of these galaxies. Extrapolations from only one of the 160 μm, 250 μm or 350 μm bands alone tend to overestimate the total IR luminosity. This may be explained by the lack of far-IR constraints around and above ~150 μm (rest-frame) before Herschel on those templates. We also note that the dust temperature of luminous IR galaxies (LIRGs, LIR ≥ 1011 $L_{\sun}$) around z ~ 1 is mildly colder by 10–15% than their local analogs and up to 20% for ULIRGs at z ~ 1.6 (using a single modified blackbody-fit to the peak far-IR emission with an emissivity index of β = 1.5). Above z = 1.5, distant galaxies are found to exhibit a substantially larger mid- over far-IR ratio, which could either result from stronger broad emission lines or warm dust continuum heated by a hidden AGN. Two thirds of the AGNs identified in the field with a measured redshift exhibit the same behavior as purely star-forming galaxies. Hence a large fraction of AGNs harbor coeval star formation at very high SFR and in conditions similar to purely star-forming galaxies.
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![The ALPINE-ALMA [CII] surve...](http://api.summon.serialssolutions.com/2.0.0/image/issn/XR4PS5YY4K/0004-6361/small "The ALPINE-ALMA [CII] survey: Dust emission effective radius up to 3 kpc in the early Universe")
![The ALPINE-ALMA [C ii ] sur...](http://api.summon.serialssolutions.com/2.0.0/image/issn/XR4PS5YY4K/1745-3925_1745-3933/small "The ALPINE-ALMA [C ii ] survey: a triple merger at z ∼ 4.56")