An official website of the United States government
Star formation rate (SFR) measurements at z > 4 have relied mostly on the rest-frame far-ultraviolet (FUV) observations. The corrections for dust attenuation based on the IRX- β relation are highly uncertain and are still debated in the literature. Hence, rest-frame far-infrared (FIR) observations are necessary to constrain the dust-obscured component of the SFR. In this paper, we exploit the rest-frame FIR continuum observations collected by the ALMA Large Program to INvestigate [CII] at Early times (ALPINE) to directly constrain the obscured SFR in galaxies at 4.4 < z < 5.9. We used stacks of continuum images to measure average infrared luminosities taking both detected and undetected sources into account. Based on these measurements, we measured the position of the main sequence of star-forming galaxies and the specific SFR (sSFR) at z ∼ 4.5 and z ∼ 5.5. We find that the main sequence and sSFR do not significantly evolve between z ∼ 4.5 and z ∼ 5.5, as opposed to lower redshifts. We developed a method to derive the obscured SFR density (SFRD) using the stellar masses or FUV-magnitudes as a proxy of FIR fluxes measured on the stacks and combining them with the galaxy stellar mass functions and FUV luminosity functions from the literature. We obtain consistent results independent of the chosen proxy. We find that the obscured fraction of SFRD is decreasing with increasing redshift, but even at z ∼ 5.5 it constitutes around 61% of the total SFRD.
more »
« less
High-redshift predictions from IllustrisTNG – III. Infrared luminosity functions, obscured star formation, and dust temperature of high-redshift galaxies
ABSTRACT We post-process galaxies in the IllustrisTNG simulations with skirt radiative transfer calculations to make predictions for the rest-frame near-infrared (NIR) and far-infrared (FIR) properties of galaxies at z ≥ 4. The rest-frame K- and z-band galaxy luminosity functions from TNG are overall consistent with observations, despite $${\sim}0.5\, \mathrm{dex}$$ underprediction at z = 4 for MK ≲ −25 and Mz ≲ −24. Predictions for the JWST MIRI observed galaxy luminosity functions and number counts are given. Based on theoretical estimations, we show that the next-generation survey conducted by JWST can detect 500 (30) galaxies in F1000W in a survey area of $$500\, {\rm arcmin}^{2}$$ at z = 6 (z = 8). As opposed to the consistency in the UV, optical, and NIR, we find that TNG, combined with our dust modelling choices, significantly underpredicts the abundance of most dust-obscured and thus most luminous FIR galaxies. As a result, the obscured cosmic star formation rate density (SFRD) and the SFRD contributed by optical/NIR dark objects are underpredicted. The discrepancies discovered here could provide new constraints on the sub-grid feedback models, or the dust contents, of simulations. Meanwhile, although the TNG predicted dust temperature and its relations with IR luminosity and redshift are qualitatively consistent with observations, the peak dust temperature of z ≥ 6 galaxies are overestimated by about $$20\, {\rm K}$$. This could be related to the limited mass resolution of our simulations to fully resolve the porosity of the interstellar medium (or specifically its dust content) at these redshifts.
more »
« less
- PAR ID:
- 10361804
- Publisher / Repository:
- Oxford University Press
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
- Volume:
- 510
- Issue:
- 4
- ISSN:
- 0035-8711
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- p. 5560-5578
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
More Like this
-
-
ABSTRACT The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) promises to revolutionize our understanding of the early Universe, and contrasting its upcoming observations with predictions of the Λ cold dark matter model requires detailed theoretical forecasts. Here, we exploit the large dynamic range of the IllustrisTNG simulation suite, TNG50, TNG100, and TNG300, to derive multiband galaxy luminosity functions from z = 2 to z = 10. We put particular emphasis on the exploration of different dust attenuation models to determine galaxy luminosity functions for the rest-frame ultraviolet (UV), and apparent wide NIRCam bands. Our most detailed dust model is based on continuum Monte Carlo radiative transfer calculations employing observationally calibrated dust properties. This calibration results in constraints on the redshift evolution of the dust attenuation normalization and dust-to-metal ratios yielding a stronger redshift evolution of the attenuation normalization compared to most previous theoretical studies. Overall we find good agreement between the rest-frame UV luminosity functions and observational data for all redshifts, also beyond the regimes used for the dust model calibrations. Furthermore, we also recover the observed high-redshift (z = 4–6) UV luminosity versus stellar mass relation, the H α versus star formation rate relation, and the H α luminosity function at z = 2. The bright end (MUV > −19.5) cumulative galaxy number densities are consistent with observational data. For the F200W NIRCam band, we predict that JWST will detect ∼80 (∼200) galaxies with a signal-to-noise ratio of 10 (5) within the NIRCam field of view, $$2.2\times 2.2 \, {\rm arcmin}^{2}$$, for a total exposure time of $$10^5\, {\rm s}$$ in the redshift range z = 8 ± 0.5. These numbers drop to ∼10 (∼40) for an exposure time of $$10^4\, {\rm s}$$.more » « less
-
ABSTRACT We present predictions for high redshift (z = 2−10) galaxy populations based on the IllustrisTNG simulation suite and a full Monte Carlo dust radiative transfer post-processing. Specifically, we discuss the H α and H β + $$[\rm O \,{\small III}]$$ luminosity functions up to z = 8. The predicted H β + $$[\rm O \,{\small III}]$$ luminosity functions are consistent with present observations at z ≲ 3 with $${\lesssim} 0.1\, {\rm dex}$$ differences in luminosities. However, the predicted H α luminosity function is $${\sim }0.3\, {\rm dex}$$ dimmer than the observed one at z ≃ 2. Furthermore, we explore continuum spectral indices, the Balmer break at 4000 Å; (D4000) and the UV continuum slope β. The median D4000 versus specific star formation rate relation predicted at z = 2 is in agreement with the local calibration despite a different distribution pattern of galaxies in this plane. In addition, we reproduce the observed AUV versus β relation and explore its dependence on galaxy stellar mass, providing an explanation for the observed complexity of this relation. We also find a deficiency in heavily attenuated, UV red galaxies in the simulations. Finally, we provide predictions for the dust attenuation curves of galaxies at z = 2−6 and investigate their dependence on galaxy colours and stellar masses. The attenuation curves are steeper in galaxies at higher redshifts, with bluer colours, or with lower stellar masses. We attribute these predicted trends to dust geometry. Overall, our results are consistent with present observations of high-redshift galaxies. Future James Webb Space Telecope observations will further test these predictions.more » « less
-
Smith, Keith (Ed.)Ultraviolet light from early galaxies is thought to have ionized gas in the intergalactic medium. However, there are few observational constraints on this epoch because of the faintness of those galaxies and the redshift of their optical light into the infrared. We report the observation, in JWST imaging, of a distant galaxy that is magnified by gravitational lensing. JWST spectroscopy of the galaxy, at rest-frame optical wavelengths, detects strong nebular emission lines that are attributable to oxygen and hydrogen. The measured redshift is z= 9.51 ± 0.01, corresponding to 510 million years after the Big Bang. The galaxy has a radius of 16.2-7.2+4.6 parsecs, which is substantially more compact than galaxies with equivalent luminosity at z~ 6 to 8, leading to a high star formation rate surface density.more » « less
-
Aims. The dust content of normal galaxies and the dust mass density (DMD) at high- z ( z > 4) are unconstrained given the source confusion and the sensitivity limitations of previous observations. The ALMA Large Program to INvestigate [CII] at Early times (ALPINE), which targeted 118 ultra-violet (UV)-selected star-forming galaxies at 4.4 < z < 5.9, provides a new opportunity to tackle this issue for the first time with a statistically robust dataset. Methods. We exploited the rest-frame far-infrared (FIR) fluxes of 23 galaxies individually detected in their continuum emission, as well as stacked continuum images, to measure the dust content of the 118 UV-selected ALPINE galaxies. We focused on the dust scaling relations and, by comparison with predictions from chemical evolution models, we probed the evolutionary stage of UV-selected galaxies at high- z . By using the observed correlation between the UV luminosity and the dust mass, we estimated the DMD of UV-selected galaxies at z ∼ 5, weighting the galaxies by means of the UV luminosity function. The derived DMD is compared with the value we estimated from ten ALPINE galaxies blindly detected in the FIR continuum, at the redshift of the ALPINE targets. Results. Our ALMA survey allows the exploration for the first time of the dust content in normal star-forming galaxies at z > 4 in a statistically robust sample of sources. The comparison of the observed dust scaling relations with chemical evolution models suggests that ALPINE galaxies are not likely progenitors of disc galaxies, but of intermediate- and low-mass proto-spheroids, resulting in present-day bulges of spiral or elliptical galaxies. Interestingly, this conclusion is in line with the independent morphological analysis that shows that the majority (∼70%) of the dust-continuum detected galaxies have a disturbed morphology. The DMD obtained at z ∼ 5 from UV-selected sources is ∼30% of the value obtained from blind FIR-selected sources, showing that the UV selection misses the most dust-rich, UV-obscured galaxies.more » « less
