We present integral field unit observations covering the O iiiλλ4959, 5007 and Hβ emission lines of 16 z < 0.2 type 2 active galactic nuclei (AGN). Our targets are selected from a well-constrained ...parent sample of ≈24 000 AGN so that we can place our observations into the context of the overall AGN population. Our targets are radio quiet with star formation rates (SFRs; ≲10–100 M⊙ yr−1) that are consistent with normal star-forming galaxies. We decouple the kinematics of galaxy dynamics and mergers from outflows. We find high-velocity ionized gas (velocity widths ≈600–1500 km s−1; maximum velocities ≤1700 km s−1) with observed spatial extents of ≳(6–16) kpc in all targets and observe signatures of spherical outflows and bi-polar superbubbles. We show that our targets are representative of z < 0.2, luminous (i.e. LO iii > 1041.7 erg s−1) type 2 AGN and that ionized outflows are not only common but also in ≥70 per cent (3σ confidence) of cases, they are extended over kiloparsec scales. Our study demonstrates that galaxy-wide energetic outflows are not confined to the most extreme star-forming galaxies or radio-luminous AGN; however, there may be a higher incidence of the most extreme outflow velocities in quasars hosted in ultraluminous infrared galaxies. Both star formation and AGN activity appear to be energetically viable to drive the outflows and we find no definitive evidence that favours one process over the other. Although highly uncertain, we derive mass outflow rates (typically ≈10 times the SFRs), kinetic energies (≈0.5–10 per cent of L
AGN) and momentum rates (typically ≳10–20 × L
AGN/c) consistent with theoretical models that predict AGN-driven outflows play a significant role in shaping the evolution of galaxies.
In this study, we investigate the relationship between the star formation rate (SFR) and AGN luminosity (
$\mathrel {L_{\rm AGN}}$
) for ∼2000 X-ray detected AGN. The AGN span over three orders of ...magnitude in X-ray luminosity (
$10^{42} <\, \mathrel {L_{2{\rm -}8\,\mathrm{keV}}}\,< 10^{45.5} \mathrel {\,\rm erg \; s^{-1}}$
) and are in the redshift range z = 0.2–2.5. Using infrared (IR) photometry (8–500
$\mathrel {\,\rm \mu m}$
), including deblended Spitzer and Herschel images and taking into account photometric upper limits, we decompose the IR spectral energy distributions into AGN and star formation components. Using the IR luminosities due to star formation, we investigate the average SFRs as a function of redshift and AGN luminosity. In agreement with previous studies, we find a strong evolution of the average SFR with redshift, tracking the observed evolution of the overall star-forming galaxy population. However, we find that the relationship between the average SFR and AGN luminosity is broadly flat at all redshifts and across all the AGN luminosities investigated; in comparison to previous studies, we find less scatter amongst the average SFRs across the wide range of AGN luminosities investigated. By comparing to empirical models, we argue that the observed flat relationship is due to short time-scale variations in AGN luminosity, driven by changes in the mass accretion rate, which wash out any underlying correlations between SFR and
$\mathrel {L_{\rm AGN}}$
. Furthermore, we show that the exact form of the predicted relationship between SFR and AGN luminosity (and its normalization) is highly sensitive to the assumed intrinsic Eddington ratio distribution.
We present the first results from the KMOS (K-band Multi-Object Spectrograph) AGN (active galactic nuclei) Survey at High redshift (KASHz), a VLT/KMOS integral-field spectroscopic (IFS) survey of z ≳ ...0.6 AGN. We present galaxy-integrated spectra of 89 X-ray AGN (L
2–10 keV = 1042–1045 erg s−1), for which we observed O iii (z ≈ 1.1–1.7) or Hα emission (z ≈ 0.6–1.1). The targets have X-ray luminosities representative of the parent AGN population and we explore the emission-line luminosities as a function of X-ray luminosity. For the O iii targets, ≈50 per cent have ionized gas velocities indicative of gas that is dominated by outflows and/or highly turbulent material (i.e. overall line widths ≳600 km s−1). The most luminous half (i.e. L
X > 6 × 1043 erg s−1) have a ≳2 times higher incidence of such velocities. On the basis of our results, we find no evidence that X-ray obscured AGN are more likely to host extreme kinematics than unobscured AGN. Our KASHz sample has a distribution of gas velocities that is consistent with a luminosity-matched sample of z < 0.4 AGN. This implies little evolution in the prevalence of ionized outflows, for a fixed AGN luminosity, despite an order-of-magnitude decrease in average star formation rates over this redshift range. Furthermore, we compare our Hα targets to a redshift-matched sample of star-forming galaxies and despite a similar distribution of Hα luminosities and likely star formation rates, we find extreme ionized gas velocities are up to ≈10 times more prevalent in the AGN-host galaxies. Our results reveal a high prevalence of extreme ionized gas velocities in high-luminosity X-ray AGN and imply that the most powerful ionized outflows in high-redshift galaxies are driven by AGN activity.
We present an Integral Field Unit survey of 73 galaxy clusters and groups with the VIsible Multi Object Spectrograph on the Very Large Telescope. We exploit the data to determine the H α gas dynamics ...on kpc scales to study the feedback processes occurring within the dense cluster cores. We determine the kinematic state of the ionized gas and show that the majority of systems (∼2/3) have relatively ordered velocity fields on kpc scales that are similar to the kinematics of rotating discs and are decoupled from the stellar kinematics of the brightest cluster galaxy. The majority of the H α flux (>50 per cent) is typically associated with these ordered kinematics and most systems show relatively simple morphologies suggesting they have not been disturbed by a recent merger or interaction. Approximately 20 per cent of the sample (13/73) have disturbed morphologies which can typically be attributed to active galactic nuclei activity disrupting the gas. Only one system shows any evidence of an interaction with another cluster member. A spectral analysis of the gas suggests that the ionization of the gas within cluster cores is dominated by non-stellar processes, possibly originating from the intracluster medium itself.
We present subkiloparsec-scale mapping of the 870 m ALMA continuum emission in six luminous (LIR ∼ 5 × 1012 L ) submillimeter galaxies (SMGs) from the ALESS survey of the Extended Chandra Deep Field ...South. Our high-fidelity 0 07-resolution imaging (∼500 pc) reveals robust evidence for structures with deconvolved sizes of 0.5-1 kpc embedded within (dominant) exponential dust disks. The large-scale morphologies of the structures within some of the galaxies show clear curvature and/or clump-like structures bracketing elongated nuclear emission, suggestive of bars, star-forming rings, and spiral arms. In this interpretation, the ratio of the "ring" and "bar" radii (1.9 0.3) agrees with that measured for such features in local galaxies. These potential spiral/ring/bar structures would be consistent with the idea of tidal disturbances, with their detailed properties implying flat inner rotation curves and Toomre-unstable disks (Q < 1). The inferred one-dimensional velocity dispersions ( r 70-160 km s−1) are marginally consistent with the limits implied if the sizes of the largest structures are comparable to the Jeans length. We create maps of the star formation rate density ( SFR) on ∼500 pc scales and show that the SMGs are able to sustain a given (galaxy-averaged) SFR over much larger physical scales than local (ultra)luminous infrared galaxies. However, on 500 pc scales, they do not exceed the Eddington limit set by radiation pressure on dust. If confirmed by kinematics, the potential presence of nonaxisymmetric structures would provide a means for net angular momentum loss and efficient star formation, helping to explain the very high star formation rates measured in SMGs.
We study the contribution of galaxies with different properties to the global densities of star formation rate (SFR), atomic (H i) and molecular hydrogen (H2) as a function of redshift. We use the ...galform model of galaxy formation, which is set in the Λ cold dark matter (ΛCDM) framework. This model includes a self-consistent calculation of the SFR, which depends on the H2 content of galaxies. The predicted SFR density and how much of this is contributed by galaxies with different stellar masses and infrared luminosities are in agreement with observations. The model predicts a modest evolution of the H i density at z < 3, which is also in agreement with the observations. The H i density is predicted to be always dominated by galaxies with SFR < 1 M yr−1. This contrasts with the H2 density, which is predicted to be dominated by galaxies with SFR >10 M yr−1 at z > 1. Current high-redshift galaxy surveys are limited to detect carbon monoxide in galaxies with SFR 30 M yr−1, which in our model make up, at most, 20 per cent of the H2 in the universe. In terms of stellar mass, the predicted H2 density is dominated by massive galaxies, M
stellar > 1010 M, while the H i density is dominated by low-mass galaxies, M
stellar < 109 M. In the context of upcoming neutral gas surveys, we suggest that the faint nature of the galaxies dominating the H i content of the Universe will hamper the identification of optical counterparts, while for H2, we expect follow-up observations of molecular emission lines of already existing galaxy catalogues to be able to uncover the H2 density of the Universe.
We have observed a sample of typical z ∼ 1 star-forming galaxies, selected from the HiZELS survey, with the new K-band Multi-Object Spectrograph (KMOS) near-infrared, multi-integral field unit ...instrument on the Very Large Telescope (VLT), in order to obtain their dynamics and metallicity gradients. The majority of our galaxies have a metallicity gradient consistent with being flat or negative (i.e. higher metallicity cores than outskirts). Intriguingly, we find a trend between metallicity gradient and specific star formation rate (sSFR), such that galaxies with a high sSFR tend to have relatively metal poor centres, a result which is strengthened when combined with data sets from the literature. This result appears to explain the discrepancies reported between different high-redshift studies and varying claims for evolution. From a galaxy evolution perspective, the trend we see would mean that a galaxy's sSFR is governed by the amount of metal-poor gas that can be funnelled into its core, triggered either by merging or through efficient accretion. In fact, merging may play a significant role as it is the starburst galaxies at all epochs, which have the more positive metallicity gradients. Our results may help to explain the origin of the fundamental metallicity relation, in which galaxies at a fixed mass are observed to have lower metallicities at higher star formation rates, especially if the metallicity is measured in an aperture encompassing only the central regions of the galaxy. Finally, we note that this study demonstrates the power of KMOS as an efficient instrument for large-scale resolved galaxy surveys.
Massive galaxies in the early Universe have been shown to be forming stars at surprisingly high rates. Prominent examples are dust-obscured galaxies which are luminous when observed at sub-millimetre ...wavelengths and which may be forming stars at a rate of 1,000 solar masses (M ) per year. These intense bursts of star formation are believed to be driven by mergers between gas-rich galaxies. Probing the properties of individual star-forming regions within these galaxies, however, is beyond the spatial resolution and sensitivity of even the largest telescopes at present. Here we report observations of the sub-millimetre galaxy SMMJ2135-0102 at redshift z = 2.3259, which has been gravitationally magnified by a factor of 32 by a massive foreground galaxy cluster lens. This magnification, when combined with high-resolution sub-millimetre imaging, resolves the star-forming regions at a linear scale of only 100 parsecs. We find that the luminosity densities of these star-forming regions are comparable to the dense cores of giant molecular clouds in the local Universe, but they are about a hundred times larger and 107 times more luminous. Although vigorously star-forming, the underlying physics of the star-formation processes at z 2 appears to be similar to that seen in local galaxies, although the energetics are unlike anything found in the present-day Universe.
Abstract
We present sensitive 870 μm continuum measurements from our ALMA programmes of 114 X-ray selected active galactic nuclei (AGN) in the Chandra Deep Field-South and Cosmic Evolution Survey ...fields. We use these observations in combination with data from Spitzer and Herschel to construct a sample of 86 X-ray selected AGN, 63 with ALMA constraints at z = 1.5–3.2 with stellar mass >2 × 1010 M⊙. We constructed broad-band spectral energy distributions in the infrared band (8–1000 μm) and constrain star-formation rates (SFRs) uncontaminated by the AGN. Using a hierarchical Bayesian method that takes into account the information from upper limits, we fit SFR and specific SFR (sSFR) distributions. We explore these distributions as a function of both X-ray luminosity and stellar mass. We compare our measurements to two versions of the Evolution and Assembly of GaLaxies and their Environments (EAGLE) hydrodynamical simulations: the reference model with AGN feedback and the model without AGN. We find good agreement between the observations and that predicted by the EAGLE reference model for the modes and widths of the sSFR distributions as a function of both X-ray luminosity and stellar mass; however, we found that the EAGLE model without AGN feedback predicts a significantly narrower width when compared to the data. Overall, from the combination of the observations with the model predictions, we conclude that (1) even with AGN feedback, we expect no strong relationship between the sSFR distribution parameters and instantaneous AGN luminosity and (2) a signature of AGN feedback is a broad distribution of sSFRs for all galaxies (not just those hosting an AGN) with stellar masses above ≈1010 M⊙.
The KMOS Redshift One Spectroscopic Survey (KROSS) is an ESO-guaranteed time survey of 795 typical star-forming galaxies in the redshift range z = 0.8-1.0 with the KMOS instrument on the Very Large ...Telescope. In this paper, we present resolved kinematics and star formation rates for 584 z ~ 1 galaxies. This constitutes the largest near-infrared Integral Field Unit survey of galaxies at z ~ 1 to date. We demonstrate the success of our selection criteria with 90 per cent of our targets found to be H alpha emitters, of which 81 per cent are spatially resolved. The fraction of the resolved KROSS sample with dynamics dominated by ordered rotation is found to be 83 plus or minus 5 per cent. However, when compared with local samples these are turbulent discs with high gas to baryonic mass fractions, ~35 per cent, and the majority are consistent with being marginally unstable (Toomre Q ~ 1). There is no strong correlation between galaxy averaged velocity dispersion and the total star formation rate, suggesting that feedback from star formation is not the origin of the elevated turbulence. We postulate that it is the ubiquity of high (likely molecular) gas fractions and the associated gravitational instabilities that drive the elevated star formation rates in these typical z ~ 1 galaxies, leading to the 10-fold enhanced star formation rate density. Finally, by comparing the gas masses obtained from inverting the star formation law with the dynamical and stellar masses, we infer an average dark matter to total mass fraction within 2.2r sub( e) (9.5 kpc) of 65 plus or minus 12 per cent, in agreement with the results from hydrodynamic simulations of galaxy formation.
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