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1. A [C ii ] 158 μ m Survey of Damped Lyα Absorber Galaxies at z  ∼ 4: Observations of Dense and Metal-enriched Neutral Gas within the Circumgalactic Medium of Star-forming Galaxies

   https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/adbbd1  

   Neeleman, Marcel; Kanekar, Nissim; Prochaska, J Xavier; Rafelski, Marc A; Kahinga, Lordrick A (April 2025, The Astrophysical Journal)

   Abstract We present a survey undertaken with the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) to study the galaxies associated with a representative sample of 16 damped Lyαabsorbers (DLAs) atz ≈ 4.1–4.5, using the [Cii] 158μm ([Cii]) line. We detect seven [Cii]-emitting galaxies in the fields of five DLAs, all of which have absorption metallicity [M/H] > −1.5. We find that the detectability of these Hi-selected galaxies with ALMA is a strong function of DLA metallicity, with a detection rate of $71_{-20}^{+11}$% for DLAs with [M/H] > −1.5 and 0⁺¹⁸% for DLAs with [M/H] < −1.5. The identified DLA galaxies have far-IR properties similar to those of typical star-forming galaxies atz ∼ 4, with estimated obscured star formation rates ranging from ≲6M_⊙yr⁻¹to 110M_⊙yr⁻¹. High-metallicity DLAs therefore provide an efficient way to identify and study samples of high-redshift, star-forming galaxies, without preselecting the galaxies by their emission properties. The agreement between the velocities of the metal absorption lines of the DLA and the [Cii] emission line of the DLA galaxy indicates that the metals within the DLA originated in the galaxy. With observed impact parameters between 14 and 59 kpc, this indicates that star-forming galaxies atz ∼ 4 have a substantial reservoir of dense, cold, neutral gas within their circumgalactic medium that has been enriched with metals from the galaxy. 

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2. The Bimodal Absorption System Imaging Campaign (BASIC). I. A Dual Population of Low-metallicity Absorbers at z < 1

   https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/acb047  

   Berg, Michelle_A; Lehner, Nicolas; Howk, J_Christopher; O’Meara, John_M; Schaye, Joop; Straka, Lorrie_A; Cooksey, Kathy_L; Tripp, Todd_M; Prochaska, J_Xavier; Oppenheimer, Benjamin_D; et al (February 2023, The Astrophysical Journal)

   Abstract The bimodal absorption system imaging campaign (BASIC) aims to characterize the galaxy environments of a sample of 36 Hi-selected partial Lyman limit systems (pLLSs) and Lyman limit systems (LLSs) in 23 QSO fields atz≲ 1. These pLLSs/LLSs provide a unique sample of absorbers with unbiased and well-constrained metallicities, allowing us to explore the origins of metal-rich and low-metallicity circumgalactic medium (CGM) atz< 1. Here we present Keck/KCWI and Very Large Telescope/MUSE observations of 11 of these QSO fields (19 pLLSs) that we combine with Hubble Space Telescope/Advanced Camera for Surveys imaging to identify and characterize the absorber-associated galaxies at 0.16 ≲z≲ 0.84. We find 23 unique absorber-associated galaxies, with an average of one associated galaxy per absorber. For seven absorbers, all with <10% solar metallicities, we find no associated galaxies with $\log M_{\star }\gtrsim 9.0$withinρ/R_virand ∣Δv∣/v_esc≤ 1.5 with respect to the absorber. We do not find any strong correlations between the metallicities or Hicolumn densities of the gas and most of the galaxy properties, except for the stellar mass of the galaxies: the low-metallicity ([X/H] ≤ −1.4) systems have a probability of ${0.39}_{-0.15}^{+0.16}$for having a host galaxy with $\log M_{\star }\ge 9.0$withinρ/R_vir≤ 1.5, while the higher metallicity absorbers have a probability of ${0.78}_{-0.13}^{+0.10}$. This implies metal-enriched pLLSs/LLSs atz< 1 are typically associated with the CGM of galaxies with $\log M_{\star }>9.0$, whereas low-metallicity pLLSs/LLSs are found in more diverse locations, with one population arising in the CGM of galaxies and another more broadly distributed in overdense regions of the universe. Using absorbers not associated with galaxies, we estimate the unweighted geometric mean metallicity of the intergalactic medium to be [X/H] ≲ −2.1 atz< 1, which is lower than previously estimated. 

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3. A Massive H i -absorption-selected Galaxy at z  ≈ 2.356

   https://doi.org/10.3847/2041-8213/adb83d  

   Kaur, B; Kanekar, N; Neeleman, M; Zhu, Y; Prochaska, J X; Rafelski, M; Becker, G (March 2025, The Astrophysical Journal Letters)

   Abstract We use the Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array (VLA) and the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array to detect CO(1–0), CO(3–2), and rest-frame 349 GHz continuum emission from an Hi-selected galaxy, DLA1020+2733g, atz ≈ 2.3568 in the field of thez= 2.3553 damped Lyαabsorber (DLA) toward QSO J1020+2733. The VLA CO(1–0) detection yields a molecular gas mass of (2.84 ± 0.42) × 10¹¹ × (α_CO/4.36)M_⊙, the largest ever measured in an Hi-selected galaxy. The DLA metallicity is +0.28 ± 0.16, from the Zniiλ2026 absorption line detected in a Keck Echellette Spectrograph and Imager spectrum. This continues the trend of high-metallicity DLAs being frequently associated with massive galaxies. We obtain a star formation rate (SFR) of ≲400M_⊙yr⁻¹from the rest-frame 349 GHz continuum emission and a relatively long molecular gas depletion timescale of ≳0.6 Gyr. The excitation of theJ= 3 rotational level is subthermal, with $r_{31}\equiv L{\prime }_{\mathrm{CO}(3-2)}/L{\prime }_{\mathrm{CO}(1-0)}=0.513\pm 0.081$, suggesting that DLA1020+2733g has a low SFR surface density. The large velocity spread of the CO lines, ≈500 km s⁻¹, and the long molecular gas depletion timescale suggest that DLA1020+2733g is likely to be a cold rotating-disk galaxy. 

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4. H i Properties of Field Galaxies at z  ≈ 0.2–0.6: Insights into Declining Cosmic Star Formation

   https://doi.org/10.3847/2041-8213/ae0d8b  

   DePalma, David; Gupta, Neeraj; Chen, Hsiao-Wen; Simcoe, Robert A; Balashev, Sergei; Boettcher, Erin; Cantalupo, Sebastiano; Chen, Mandy C; Combes, Françoise; Faucher-Giguère, Claude-André; et al (October 2025, The Astrophysical Journal Letters)

   Abstract We report statistically significant detection of Hi21 cm emission from intermediate-redshift (z ≈ 0.2–0.6) galaxies. By leveraging multisightline galaxy survey data from the Cosmic Ultraviolet Baryon Survey and deep radio observations from the MeerKAT Absorption Line Survey, we have established a sample of ≈6000 spectroscopically identified galaxies in 11 distinct fields to constrain the neutral gas content at intermediate redshifts. The galaxies sample a broad range in stellar mass, from $\log M_{\mathrm{star}}/M_{\odot }\approx 8$to $\log M_{\mathrm{star}}/M_{\odot }\approx 11$, with a median of ${〈\log M_{\mathrm{star}}/M_{\odot }〉}_{\mathrm{med}}\approx 10$and a wide range in redshift fromz ≈ 0.24 toz ≈ 0.63 with a median of 〈z〉_med = 0.44. While no individual galaxies show detectable Hiemission, the emission line signal is detected in the stacked spectra of all subsamples at greater than 4σsignificance. The observed total Hi21 cm line flux translates to a Himass,M_{H I}≈10¹⁰M_⊙. We find a high Hi-to-stellar-mass ratio ofM_HI/M_star ≈ 6 for low-mass galaxies with $〈\log M_{\mathrm{star}}/M_{\odot }〉\approx 9.3$(>3.7σ). For galaxies with $〈\log M_{\mathrm{star}}/M_{\odot }〉\approx 10.6$, we findM_HI/M_star ≈ 0.3 (>4.7σ). In addition, the redshift evolution of Himass, 〈M_{H I}〉, in both low- and high-mass field galaxies, inferred from the stacked emission-line signal, aligns well with the expectation from the cosmic star formation history. This suggests that the overall decline in the cosmic star formation activity across the general galaxy population may be connected to a decreasing supply of neutral hydrogen. Finally, our analysis has revealed significant 21 cm signals at distances greater than 75 kpc from these intermediate-redshift galaxies, indicating a substantial reservoir of Higas in their extended surroundings. 

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5. The Qz5 Survey. I. How the H i Mass Density of the Universe Evolves with Cosmic Time

   https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/adb430  

   Oyarzún, Grecco A; Rafelski, Marc; Christensen, Lise; Ozyurt, Fiona; Jorgenson, Regina A; Neeleman, M; Fumagalli, Michele; Prochaska, J Xavier; Worseck, G; Wisz, M E; et al (April 2025, The Astrophysical Journal)

   Abstract We report that the neutral hydrogen (Hi) mass density of the Universe (ρ_Hi) increases with cosmic time sincez ∼ 5, peaks atz ∼ 3, and then decreases towardz ∼ 0. This is the first result of Qz5, our spectroscopic survey of 63 quasars atz ≳ 5 with VLT/X-SHOOTER and Keck/ESI aimed at characterizing intervening Higas absorbers atz ∼ 5. The main feature of Qz5 is the high resolution (R ∼ 7000–9000) of the spectra, which allows us to (1) accurately detect high column density Higas absorbers in an increasingly neutral intergalactic medium atz ∼ 5 and (2) determine the reliability of previousρ_Himeasurements derived with lower resolution spectroscopy. We find five intervening damped Lyαabsorbers (DLAs) atz > 4.5, which corresponds to the lowest DLA incidence rate ( $0.034_{0.02}^{0.05}$) atz ≳ 2. We also measure the lowestρ_Hiatz ≳ 2 from our sample of DLAs and subDLAs, corresponding toρ_Hi $=0.56_{0.31}^{0.82}\times 10^8{M}_{\odot }$Mpc⁻³atz ∼ 5. Taking into account our measurements atz ∼ 5 and systematic biases in the DLA detection rate at lower spectral resolutions, we conclude thatρ_Hidoubles fromz ∼ 5 toz ∼ 3. From these results emerges a qualitative agreement between how the cosmic densities of Higas mass, molecular gas mass, and star formation rate build up with cosmic time. 

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