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We investigate the potential of using a sample of very high-redshift (2 ≲z≲ 6) (VHZ) Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) attainable by JWST on constraining cosmological parameters. At such high redshifts, the age of the universe is young enough that the VHZ SN Ia sample comprises the very first SNe Ia of the universe, with progenitors among the very first generation of low-mass stars that the universe has made. We show that the VHZ SNe Ia can be used to disentangle systematic effects due to the luminosity distance evolution with redshifts intrinsic to SN Ia standardization. Assuming that the systematic evolution can be described by a linear or logarithmic formula, we found that the coefficients of this dependence can be determined accurately and decoupled from cosmological models. Systematic evolution as large as 0.15 mag and 0.45 mag out toz= 5 can be robustly separated from popular cosmological models for linear and logarithmic evolution, respectively. The VHZ SNe Ia will lay the foundation for quantifying the systematic redshift evolution of SN Ia luminosity distance scales. When combined with SN Ia surveys at comparatively lower redshifts, the VHZ SNe Ia allow for the precise measurement of the history of the expansion of the universe fromz∼ 0 to the epoch approaching reionization.

 

We present the largest and most homogeneous collection of near-infrared (NIR) spectra of Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia): 339 spectra of 98 individual SNe obtained as part of the Carnegie Supernova Project-II. These spectra, obtained with the FIRE spectrograph on the 6.5 m Magellan Baade telescope, have a spectral range of 0.8–2.5μm. Using this sample, we explore the NIR spectral diversity of SNe Ia and construct a template of spectral time series as a function of the light-curve-shape parameter, color stretchs_BV. Principal component analysis is applied to characterize the diversity of the spectral features and reduce data dimensionality to a smaller subspace. Gaussian process regression is then used to model the subspace dependence on phase and light-curve shape and the associated uncertainty. Our template is able to predict spectral variations that are correlated withs_BV, such as the hallmark NIR features: Mgiiat early times and theH-band break after peak. Using this template reduces the systematic uncertainties inK-corrections by ∼90% compared to those from the Hsiao template. These uncertainties, defined as the meanK-correction differences computed with the color-matched template and observed spectra, are on the level of 4 × 10⁻⁴mag on average. This template can serve as the baseline spectral energy distribution for light-curve fitters and can identify peculiar spectral features that might point to compelling physics. The results presented here will substantially improve future SN Ia cosmological experiments, for both nearby and distant samples.

 

ABSTRACT We calculate H α-based star formation rates and determine the star formation rate–stellar mass relation for members of three Spitzer Adaptation of the Red-Sequence Cluster Survey (SpARCS) clusters at z ∼ 1.6 and serendipitously identified field galaxies at similar redshifts to the clusters. We find similar star formation rates in cluster and field galaxies throughout our range of stellar masses. The results are comparable to those seen in other clusters at similar redshifts, and consistent with our previous photometric evidence for little quenching activity in clusters. One possible explanation for our results is that galaxies in our z ∼ 1.6 clusters have been accreted too recently to show signs of environmental quenching. It is also possible that the clusters are not yet dynamically mature enough to produce important environmental quenching effects shown to be important at low redshift, such as ram-pressure stripping or harassment. 

ABSTRACT We constrain the evolution of the brightest cluster galaxy plus intracluster light (BCG + ICL) using an ensemble of 42 galaxy groups and clusters that span redshifts of z = 0.05−1.75 and masses of M500,c= 2 × 1013−1015 M⊙. Specifically, we measure the relationship between the BCG + ICL stellar mass M⋆ and M500,c at projected radii 10 < r < 100 kpc for three different epochs. At intermediate redshift ($\bar{z}=0.40$), where we have the best data, we find M⋆ ∝ M500,c0.48 ± 0.06. Fixing the exponent of this power law for all redshifts, we constrain the normalization of this relation to be 2.08 ± 0.21 times higher at $\bar{z}=0.40$ than at high redshift ($\bar{z}=1.55$). We find no change in the relation from intermediate to low redshift ($\bar{z}=0.10$). In other words, for fixed M500,c, M⋆ at 10 < r < 100 kpc increases from $\bar{z}=1.55$ to $\bar{z}=0.40$ and not significantly thereafter. Theoretical models predict that the physical mass growth of the cluster from z = 1.5 to z = 0 within r500,c is 1.4×, excluding evolution due to definition of r500,c. We find that M⋆ within the central 100 kpc increases by ∼3.8× over the same period. Thus, the growth of M⋆ in this central region is more than a factor of 2 greater than the physical mass growth of the cluster as a whole. Furthermore, the concentration of the BCG + ICL stellar mass, defined by the ratio of stellar mass within 10 kpc to the total stellar mass within 100 kpc, decreases with increasing M500,c at all z. We interpret this result as evidence for inside–out growth of the BCG + ICL over the past 10 Gyr, with stellar mass assembly occurring at larger radii at later times.