Galaxy formation and evolution

Abstract:

Low-surface-brightness galaxies (LSBGs) – defined as systems that are fainter than the surface-brightness limits of past wide-area surveys – form the overwhelming majority of galaxies in the dwarf regime (M⋆ < 109 M⊙). Using NewHorizon, a high-resolution cosmological simulation, we study the origin of LSBGs and explain why LSBGs at similar stellar mass show the large observed spread in surface brightness. NewHorizon galaxies populate a well-defined locus in the surface brightness–stellar mass plane, with a spread of ∼3 mag arcsec−2, in agreement with deep Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) Stripe 82 data. Galaxies with fainter surface brightnesses today are born in regions of higher dark matter density. This results in faster gas accretion and more intense star formation at early epochs. The stronger resultant supernova feedback flattens gas profiles at a faster rate, which, in turn, creates shallower stellar profiles (i.e. more diffuse systems) more rapidly. As star formation declines towards late epochs ( z < 1), the larger tidal perturbations and ram pressure experienced by these systems (due to their denser local environments) accelerate the divergence in surface brightness, by increasing their effective radii and reducing star formation, respectively. A small minority of dwarfs depart from the main locus towards high surface brightnesses, making them detectable in past wide surveys (e.g. standard-depth SDSS images). These systems have anomalously high star formation rates, triggered by recent fly-by or merger-driven starbursts. We note that objects considered extreme or anomalous at the depth of current data sets, e.g. ‘ultra-diffuse galaxies’, actually dominate the predicted dwarf population and will be routinely visible in future surveys like the Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST).

Abstract:

We measure the harmonic-space auto-power spectrum of the galaxy overdensity in the LOFAR Two-metre Sky Survey (LoTSS) First Data Release and its cross correlation with the map of the lensing convergence of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) from the Planck collaboration. We report a ∼5σ detection of the cross-correlation. We show that the combination of the clustering power spectrum and CMB lensing cross-correlation allows us to place constraints on the high-redshift tail of the redshift distribution, one of the largest sources of uncertainty in the use of continuum surveys for cosmology. Our analysis shows a preference for a broader redshift tail than that predicted by the photometric redshifts contained in the LoTSS value added catalog, as expected, and more compatible with predictions from simulations and spectroscopic data. Although the ability of CMB lensing to constrain the width and tail of the redshift distribution could also be valuable for the analysis of current and future photometric weak lensing surveys, we show that its performance relies strongly on the redshift evolution of the galaxy bias. Assuming the redshift distribution predicted by the Square Kilometre Array Design simulations, we use our measurements to place constraints on the linear bias of radio galaxies and the amplitude of matter inhomogeneities σ8, finding σ8=0.69+0.14−0.21 assuming the galaxy bias scales with the inverse of the linear growth factor, and σ8=0.79+0.17−0.32 assuming a constant bias.

Abstract:

At high redshift, the cosmic web is widely expected to have a significant impact on the morphologies, dynamics, and star formation rates of the galaxies embedded within it, underscoring the need for a comprehensive study of the properties of such a filamentary network. With this goal in mind, we perform an analysis of high-z gas and dark matter (DM) filaments around a Milky Way-like progenitor simulated with the RAMSES adaptive mesh refinement (AMR) code from cosmic scales (∼1 Mpc) down to the virial radius of its DM halo host (∼20 kpc at z = 4). Radial density profiles of both gas and DM filaments are found to have the same functional form, namely a plummer-like profile modified to take into account the wall within which these filaments are embedded. Measurements of the typical filament core radius r0 from the simulation are consistent with that of isothermal cylinders in hydrostatic equilibrium. Such an analytic model also predicts a redshift evolution for the core radius of filaments in fair agreement with the measured value for DM [r0∝ (1 + z)−3.18 ± 0.28]. Gas filament cores grow as [r0∝ (1 + z)−2.72 ± 0.26]. In both gas and DM, temperature and vorticity sharply drop at the edge of filaments, providing an excellent way to constrain the outer filament radius. When feedback is included, the gas temperature and vorticity fields are strongly perturbed, hindering such a measurement in the vicinity of the galaxy. However, the core radius of the filaments as measured from the gas density field is largely unaffected by feedback; and the median central density is only reduced by about 20 per cent.

Abstract:

Population III (Pop. III) stars, as of yet, have not been detected, however as we move into the era of extremely large telescopes this is likely to change. One likely tracer for Pop. III stars is the He IIλ1640 emission line, which will be detectable by the HARMONI spectrograph on the European Extremely Large Telescope (ELT) over a broad range of redshifts (2 ≤ z ≤ 14). By post-processing galaxies from the cosmological, AMR-hydrodynamical simulation NEWHORIZON with theoretical spectral energy distributions (SED) for Pop. III stars and radiative transfer (i.e. the Yggdrasil Models and CLOUDY look-up tables, respectively) we are able to compute the flux of He IIλ1640 for individual galaxies. From mock 10 h observations of these galaxies we show that HARMONI will be able to detect Pop. III stars in galaxies up to z ∼ 10 provided Pop. III stars have a top heavy initial mass function (IMF). Furthermore, we find that should Pop. III stars instead have an IMF similar to those of the Pop. I stars, the He IIλ1640 line would only be observable for galaxies with Pop. III stellar masses in excess of 107M⊙⁠, average stellar age <1Myr at z = 4. Finally, we are able to determine the minimal intrinsic flux required for HARMONI to detect Pop. III stars in a galaxy up to z = 10.

Abstract:

Horizon Run 5 (HR5) is a cosmological hydrodynamical simulation that captures the properties of the universe on a Gpc scale while achieving a resolution of 1 kpc. Inside the simulation box, we zoom in on a high-resolution cuboid region with a volume of 1049 × 119 × 127 cMpc3. The subgrid physics chosen to model galaxy formation includes radiative heating/cooling, UV background, star formation, supernova feedback, chemical evolution tracking the enrichment of oxygen and iron, the growth of supermassive black holes, and feedback from active galactic nuclei in the form of a dual jet-heating mode. For this simulation, we implemented a hybrid MPI-OpenMP version of RAMSES, specifically targeted for modern many-core many-thread parallel architectures. In addition to the traditional simulation snapshots, lightcone data were generated on the fly. For the post-processing, we extended the friends-of-friend algorithm and developed a new galaxy finder PGalF to analyze the outputs of HR5. The simulation successfully reproduces observations, such as the cosmic star formation history and connectivity of galaxy distribution, We identify cosmological structures at a wide range of scales, from filaments with a length of several cMpc, to voids with a radius of ~ 100 cMpc. The simulation also indicates that hydrodynamical effects on small scales impact galaxy clustering up to very large scales near and beyond the baryonic acoustic oscillation scale. Hence, caution should be taken when using that scale as a cosmic standard ruler: one needs to carefully understand the corresponding biases. The simulation is expected to be an invaluable asset for the interpretation of upcoming deep surveys of the universe.