Search

Spectroscopic studies of extreme-ionization galaxies (EIGs) are critical to our understanding of exotic systems throughout cosmic time. These EIGs exhibit spectral features requiring >54.42 eV photons: the energy needed to ionize helium into He2+ fully and emit He ii recombination lines. Spectroscopic studies of EIGs can probe exotic stellar populations or accretion onto intermediate-mass black holes (∼102–105 M ⊙), which are the possibly key contributors to the reionization of the Universe. To facilitate the use of EIGs as probes of high-ionization systems, we focus on ratios constructed from several rest-frame UV/optical emission lines: [O iii ] λ 5008, H β, [Ne iii ] λ 3870, [O ii ] λ λ 3727, 3729, and [Ne v ] λ 3427. These lines probe the relative intensity at energies of 35.12, 13.62, 40.96, 13.62, and 97.12 eV, respectively, covering a wider range of ionization than traced by other common rest-frame UV/optical techniques. We use the ratios of these lines ([Ne v ]/[Ne iii ] ≡ Ne53, [O iii ]/H β, and [Ne iii ]/[O ii ]), which are nearby in wavelength, mitigating the effects of dust attenuation and uncertainties in flux calibration. We make predictions from photoionization models constructed from Cloudy that use a broad range of stellar populations and black hole accretion models to explore the sensitivity of these line ratios to changes in the ionizing spectrum. We compare our models to observations from the Hubble Space Telescope and JWST of galaxies with strong high-ionization emission lines at z ∼ 0, z ∼ 2, and 5 < z < 8.5. We show that the Ne53 ratio can separate galaxies with ionization from "normal" stellar populations from those with active galactic nuclei and even "exotic" Population III models. We introduce new selection methods to identify galaxies with photoionization driven by Population III stars or intermediate-mass black hole accretion disks that could be identified in upcoming high-redshift spectroscopic surveys. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For over 60 yr, the scientific community has studied actively growing central supermassive black holes (active galactic nuclei, AGNs), but fundamental questions on their genesis remain unanswered. Numerical simulations and theoretical arguments show that black hole growth occurs during short-lived periods (∼107â€"108 yr) of powerful accretion. Major mergers are commonly invoked as the most likely dissipative process to trigger the rapid fueling of AGNs. If the AGNâ€"merger paradigm is true, we expect galaxy mergers to coincide with black hole accretion during a heavily obscured AGN phase (N H > 1023 cmâˆ'2). Starting from one of the largest samples of obscured AGNs at 0.5 < z < 3.1, we select 40 nonstarbursting lower-luminosity obscured AGNs. We then construct a one-to-one matched redshift and near-IR magnitude-matched nonstarbursting inactive galaxy control sample. Combining deep color Hubble Space Telescope imaging and a novel method of human classification, we test the mergerâ€"AGN paradigm prediction that heavily obscured AGNs are strongly associated with galaxies undergoing a major merger. On the total sample of 80 galaxies, we estimate each individual classifier’s accuracy at identifying merging galaxies/postmerging systems and isolated galaxies. We calculate the probability of each galaxy being in either a major merger or an isolated system, given the accuracy of the human classifiers and the individual classifications of each galaxy. We do not find statistically significant evidence that obscured AGNs at cosmic noon are predominantly found in systems with evidence of significant merging/postmerging features. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We use the Cosmic Assembly Deep Near-infrared Extragalactic Legacy Survey data to study the relationship between quenching and the stellar mass surface density within the central radius of 1 kpc (Σ1) of low-mass galaxies (stellar mass M* ≲ 109.5M⊙) at 0.5 ≤ z < 1.5. Our sample is mass complete down to ∼109M⊙ at 0.5 ≤ z < 1.0. We compare the mean Σ1 of star-forming galaxies (SFGs) and quenched galaxies (QGs) at the same redshift and M*. We find that low-mass QGs have a higher Σ1 than low-mass SFGs, similar to galaxies above 1010M⊙. The difference of Σ1 between QGs and SFGs increases slightly with M* at M* ≲ 1010M⊙ and decreases with M* at M* ≳ 1010M⊙. The turnover mass is consistent with the mass where quenching mechanisms transition from internal to environmental quenching. At 0.5 ≤ z < 1.0, we find that Σ1 of galaxies increases by about 0.25 dex in the green valley (i.e., the transition region from star forming to fully quenched), regardless of their M*. Using the observed specific star formation rate gradient in the literature as a constraint, we estimate that the quenching timescale (i.e., time spent in the transition) of low-mass galaxies is a few (∼4) Gyr at 0.5 ≤ z < 1.0. The mechanisms responsible for quenching need to gradually quench star formation in an outside-in way, i.e., preferentially ceasing star formation in outskirts of galaxies while maintaining their central star formation to increase Σ1. An interesting and intriguing result is the similarity of the growth of Σ1 in the green valley between low-mass and massive galaxies, which suggests that the role of internal processes in quenching low-mass galaxies is a question worthy of further investigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Galaxy interactions and mergers are thought to play an important role in the evolution of galaxies. Studies in the nearby universe show a higher fraction of active galactic nuclei (AGNs) in interacting and merging galaxies than in their isolated counterparts, indicating that such interactions are important contributors to black hole growth. To investigate the evolution of this role at higher redshifts, we have compiled the largest known sample of major spectroscopic galaxy pairs (2381 with ΔV < 5000 km s−1) at 0.5 < z < 3.0 from observations in the COSMOS and CANDELS surveys. We identify X-ray and IR AGNs among this kinematic pair sample, a visually identified sample of mergers and interactions, and a mass-, redshift-, and environment-matched control sample for each in order to calculate AGN fractions and the level of AGN enhancement as a function of relative velocity, redshift, and X-ray luminosity. While we see a slight increase in AGN fraction with decreasing projected separation, overall, we find no significant enhancement relative to the control sample at any separation. In the closest projected separation bin (< 25 kpc, ΔV < 1000 km s−1), we find enhancements of a factor of and for X-ray and IR-selected AGNs, respectively. While we conclude that galaxy interactions do not significantly enhance AGN activity on average over 0.5 < z < 3.0 at these separations, given the errors and the small sample size at the closest projected separations, our results would be consistent with the presence of low-level AGN enhancement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Existing models of galaxy formation have not yet explained striking correlations between structure and star formation activity in galaxies, notably the sloped and moving boundaries that divide star-forming from quenched galaxies in key structural diagrams. This paper uses these and other relations to "reverse engineer" the quenching process for central galaxies. The basic idea is that star-forming galaxies with larger radii (at a given stellar mass) have lower black hole (BH) masses due to lower central densities. Galaxies cross into the green valley when the cumulative effective energy radiated by their BH equals ∼4× their halo gas-binding energy. Because larger-radii galaxies have smaller BHs, one finds that they must evolve to higher stellar masses in order to meet this halo energy criterion, which explains the sloping boundaries. A possible cause of radii differences among star-forming galaxies is halo concentration. The evolutionary tracks of star-forming galaxies are nearly parallel to the green-valley boundaries, and it is mainly the sideways motions of these boundaries with cosmic time that cause galaxies to quench. BH scaling laws for star-forming, quenched, and green-valley galaxies are different, and most BH mass growth takes place in the green valley. Implications include the radii of star-forming galaxies are an important second parameter in shaping their BHs; BHs are connected to their halos but in different ways for star-forming, quenched, and green-valley galaxies; and the same BH–halo quenching mechanism has been in place since z ∼ 3. We conclude with a discussion of BH–galaxy coevolution and the origin and interpretation of BH scaling laws. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We analyze the resolved stellar populations of 473 massive star-forming galaxies at 0.7 < z < 1.5, with multi-wavelength broadband imaging from CANDELS and Hα surface brightness profiles at the same kiloparsec resolution from 3D-HST. Together, this unique data set sheds light on how the assembled stellar mass is distributed within galaxies, and where new stars are being formed. We find the Hα morphologies to resemble more closely those observed in the ACS I band than in the WFC3 H band, especially for the larger systems. We next derive a novel prescription for Hα dust corrections, which accounts for extra extinction toward H II regions. The prescription leads to consistent star formation rate (SFR) estimates and reproduces the observed relation between the Hα/UV luminosity ratio and visual extinction, on both a pixel-by-pixel and a galaxy-integrated level. We find the surface density of star formation to correlate with the surface density of assembled stellar mass for spatially resolved regions within galaxies, akin to the so-called “main sequence of star formation” established on a galaxy-integrated level. Deviations from this relation toward lower equivalent widths are found in the inner regions of galaxies. Clumps and spiral features, on the other hand, are associated with enhanced Hα equivalent widths, bluer colors, and higher specific SFRs compared to the underlying disk. Their Hα/UV luminosity ratio is lower than that of the underlying disk, suggesting that the ACS clump selection preferentially picks up those regions of elevated star formation activity that are the least obscured by dust. Our analysis emphasizes that monochromatic studies of galaxy structure can be severely limited by mass-to-light ratio variations due to dust and spatially inhomogeneous star formation histories. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Projected axis ratio measurements of 880 early-type galaxies at redshifts 1 < z < 2.5 selected from CANDELS are used to reconstruct and model their intrinsic shapes. The sample is selected on the basis of multiple rest-frame colors to reflect low star-formation activity. We demonstrate that these galaxies as an ensemble are dust-poor and transparent and therefore likely have smooth light profiles, similar to visually classified early-type galaxies. Similar to their present-day counterparts, the z > 1 early-type galaxies show a variety of intrinsic shapes; even at a fixed mass, the projected axis ratio distributions cannot be explained by the random projection of a set of galaxies with very similar intrinsic shapes. However, a two-population model for the intrinsic shapes, consisting of a triaxial, fairly round population, combined with a flat (c/a ∼ 0.3) oblate population, adequately describes the projected axis ratio distributions of both present-day and z > 1 early-type galaxies. We find that the proportion of oblate versus triaxial galaxies depends both on the galaxies’ stellar mass, and—at a given mass—on redshift. For present-day and z < 1 early-type galaxies the oblate fraction strongly depends on galaxy mass. At z > 1, this trend is much weaker over the mass range explored here (1010 < M∗/M⊙ < 1011), because the oblate fraction among massive (M∗ ∼ 1011 M⊙) was much higher in the past: 0.59 ± 0.10 at z > 1, compared to 0.20 ± 0.02 at z ∼ 0.1. When combined with previous findings that the number density and sizes of early-type galaxies substantially increase over the same redshift range, this can be explained by the gradual emergence of merger-produced elliptical galaxies, at the expense of the destruction of pre-existing disks that were common among their high-redshift progenitors. In contrast, the oblate fraction among low-mass early-type galaxies (log(M∗/M⊙) < 10.5) increased toward the present, from z = 0 to 0.38 ± 0.11 at z > 1 to 0.72 ± 0.06 at z = 0. We speculate that this lower incidence of disks at early cosmic times can be attributed to two factors: low-mass, star-forming progenitors at z > 1 were not settled into stable disks to the same degree as at later cosmic times, and the stripping of gas from star-forming disk galaxies in dense environments is an increasingly important process at lower redshifts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We study the environmental dependence of color, stellar mass, and morphology by comparing galaxies in a forming cluster to those in the field at z = 1.6 with Hubble Space Telescope near-infrared imaging in the CANDELS/UDS field. We quantify the morphology of the galaxies using the effective radius, reff , and Sérsic index, n. In both the cluster and field, approximately half of the bulge-dominated galaxies (n > 2) reside on the red sequence of the color-magnitude diagram, and most disk-dominated galaxies (n < 2) have colors expected for star-forming galaxies. There is weak evidence that cluster galaxies have redder rest-frame U-B colors and higher stellar masses compared to the field. Star-forming galaxies in both the cluster and field show no significant differences in their morphologies. In contrast, there is evidence that quiescent galaxies in the cluster have larger median effective radii and smaller Sérsic indices compared to the field with a significance of 2σ. These differences are most pronounced for galaxies at clustercentric distances 1Mpc< Rproj < 1.5Mpc, which have low Sérsic indices and possibly larger effective radii, more consistent with star-forming galaxies at this epoch and in contrast to other quiescent galaxies. We argue that star-forming galaxies are processed under the influence of the cluster environment at distances greater than the cluster-halo virial radius. Our results are consistent with models where gas accretion onto these galaxies is suppressed from processes associated with the cluster environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We combine high-resolution Hubble Space Telescope/WFC3 images with multi-wavelength photometry to track the evolution of structure and activity of massive (M" > 1010M☉) galaxies at redshifts z = 1.4-3 in two fields of the Cosmic Assembly Near-infrared Deep Extragalactic Legacy Survey. We detect compact, star-forming galaxies (cSFGs) whose number densities, masses, sizes, and star formation rates (SFRs) qualify them as likely progenitors of compact, quiescent, massive galaxies (cQGs) at z = 1.5-3. At z ≳ 2, cSFGs present SFR = 100-200M☉ yr-1, yet their specific star formation rates (sSFR ~ 10-9 yr-1) are typically half that of other massive SFGs at the same epoch, and host X-ray luminous active galactic nuclei (AGNs) 30 times (~30%) more frequently. These properties suggest that cSFGs are formed by gas-rich processes (mergers or disk-instabilities) that induce a compact starburst and feed an AGN, which, in turn, quench the star formation on dynamical timescales (few 108 yr). The cSFGs are continuously being formed at z = 2-3 and fade to cQGs down to z ~ 1.5. After this epoch, cSFGs are rare, thereby truncating the formation of new cQGs. Meanwhile, down to z = 1, existing cQGs continue to enlarge to match local QGs in size, while less-gas-rich mergers and other secular mechanisms shepherd (larger) SFGs as later arrivals to the red sequence. In summary, we propose two evolutionary tracks of QG formation: an early (z ≳ 2), formation path of rapidly quenched cSFGs fading into cQGs that later enlarge within the quiescent phase, and a late-arrival (z ≳ 2) path in which larger SFGs form extended QGs without passing through a compact state. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using Hubble Space Telescope/WFC3 imaging taken as part of the Cosmic Assembly Near-infrared Deep Extragalactic Legacy Survey, we examine the role that major galaxy mergers play in triggering active galactic nucleus (AGN) activity at z ~ 2. Our sample consists of 72 moderate-luminosity (LX ~ 1042-44 erg s-1) AGNs at 1.5 < z < 2.5 that are selected using the 4 Ms Chandra observations in the Chandra Deep Field South, the deepest X-ray observations to date. Employing visual classifications, we have analyzed the rest-frame optical morphologies of the AGN host galaxies and compared them to a mass-matched control sample of 216 non-active galaxies at the same redshift. We find that most of the AGNs reside in disk galaxies (Due to image rights restrictions, multiple line equation(s) cannot be graphically displayed.), while a smaller percentage are found in spheroids (Due to image rights restrictions, multiple line equation(s) cannot be graphically displayed.). Roughly Due to image rights restrictions, multiple line equation(s) cannot be graphically displayed. of the AGN hosts have highly disturbed morphologies and appear to be involved in a major merger or interaction, while most of the hosts (Due to image rights restrictions, multiple line equation(s) cannot be graphically displayed.) appear relatively relaxed and undisturbed. These fractions are statistically consistent with the fraction of control galaxies that show similar morphological disturbances. These results suggest that the hosts of moderate-luminosity AGNs are no more likely to be involved in an ongoing merger or interaction relative to non-active galaxies of similar mass at z ~ 2. The high disk fraction observed among the AGN hosts also appears to be at odds with predictions that merger-driven accretion should be the dominant AGN fueling mode at z ~ 2, even at moderate X-ray luminosities. Although we cannot rule out that minor mergers are responsible for triggering these systems, the presence of a large population of relatively undisturbed disk-like hosts suggests that the stochastic accretion of gas plays a greater role in fueling AGN activity at z ~ 2 than previously thought. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present Hubble Space Telescope Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) slitless grism spectroscopy of 28 emission-line galaxies at z ~ 2, in the GOODS-S region of the Cosmic Assembly Near-infrared Deep Extragalactic Legacy Survey. The high sensitivity of these grism observations, with > 1σ detections of emission lines to f > 2.5 x 10-18 erg s-1 cm-2 means that the galaxies in the sample are typically ~7 times less massive (median M* = 109.5 M⊙) than previously studied z ~ 2 emission-line galaxies. Despite their lower mass, the galaxies have [OIII]/Hβ ratios which are very similar to previously studied z ~ 2 galaxies and much higher than the typical emission-line ratios of local galaxies. The WFC3 grism allows for unique studies of spatial gradients in emission lines, and we stack the two-dimensional spectra of the galaxies for this purpose. In the stacked data the [O III] emission line is more spatially concentrated than the Hβ emission line with 98.1% confidence. We additionally stack the X-ray data (all sources are individually undetected), and find that the average L[OIII]/L0.5-10keV ratio is intermediate between typical z ~ 0 obscured active galaxies and star-forming galaxies. Together the compactness of the stacked [OIII] spatial profile and the stacked X-ray data suggest that at least some of these low-mass, low-metallicity galaxies harbor weak active galactic nuclei. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We analyze the dependence of galaxy structure (size and Sérsic index) and mode of star formation (ΣSFR and SFRIR/SFRUV) on the position of galaxies in the star formation rate (SFR) versus mass diagram. Our sample comprises roughly 640,000 galaxies at z ~ 0.1, 130,000 galaxies at z ~ 1, and 36,000 galaxies at z ~ 2. Structural measurements for all but the z ~ 0.1 galaxies are based on Hubble Space Telescope imaging, and SFRs are derived using a Herschel-calibrated ladder of SFR indicators. We find that a correlation between the structure and stellar population of galaxies (i.e., a "Hubble sequence") is already in place since at least z ~ 2.5. At all epochs, typical star-forming galaxies on the main sequence are well approximated by exponential disks, while the profiles of quiescent galaxies are better described by de Vaucouleurs profiles. In the upper envelope of the main sequence, the relation between the SFR and Sérsic index reverses, suggesting a rapid buildup of the central mass concentration in these starbursting outliers. We observe quiescent, moderately and highly star-forming systems to co-exist over an order of magnitude or more in stellar mass. At each mass and redshift, galaxies on the main sequence have the largest size. The rate of size growth correlates with specific SFR, and so does SSFR at each redshift. A simple model using an empirically determined star formation law and metallicity scaling, in combination with an assumed geometry for dust and stars, is able to relate the observed ΣSFR and SFRIR/SFRUV, provided a more patchy dust geometry is assumed for high-redshift galaxies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present uncontaminated rest-frame u - R colors of 78 X-ray-selected active galactic nucleus (AGN) hosts at 0.5 < z < i.5 in the Chandra Deep Fields measured with Hubble Space Telescope (HST)/Advanced Camera for Surveys/NICMOS and Very Large Telescope/ISAAC imaging. We also present spatially resolved NUV - R color gradients for a subsample of AGN hosts imaged by HST/Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3). Integrated, uncorrected photometry is not reliable for comparing the mean properties of soft and hard AGN host galaxies at z ~ 1 due to color contamination from point-source AGN emission. We use a cloning simulation to develop a calibration between concentration and this color contamination and use this to correct host galaxy colors. The mean u - R color of the unobscured/soft hosts beyond ~6 kpc is statistically equivalent to that of the obscured/hard hosts (the soft sources are 0.09 4± 0.16 mag bluer). Furthermore, the rest-frame V - J colors of the obscured and unobscured hosts beyond ~6 kpc are statistically equivalent, suggesting that the two populations have similar distributions of dust extinction. For the WFC3/infrared sample, the mean NUV - R color gradients of unobscured and obscured sources differ by less than ~0.5 mag for r > 1.1 kpc. These three observations imply that AGN obscuration is uncorrelated with the star formation rate beyond ~1 kpc. These observations favor a unification scenario for intermediate-luminosity AGNs in which obscuration is determined geometrically. Scenarios in which the majority of intermediate-luminosity AGNs at z ~ 1 are undergoing rapid, galaxy-wide quenching due to AGN-driven feedback processes are disfavored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using Spitzer-Multiband Imaging Photometer 24 µm imaging and extensive Keck spectroscopy, we examine the nature of the obscured star-forming population in three clusters and three groups at z ~ 0.9. These six systems are the primary components of the C11604 supercluster, the largest structure imaged by Spitzer at redshifts approaching unity. We find that the average density of 24 µm detected galaxies within the CI 1604 clusters is nearly twice that of the surrounding field and that this overdensity scales with the cluster's dynamical state. The 24 µm bright members often appear optically unremarkable and exhibit only moderate [O II] line emission due to severe obscuration. Their spatial distribution suggests that they are an infalling population, but an examination of their spectral properties, morphologies, and optical colors indicates that they are not simply analogs of the field population that have yet to be quenched. Using stacked composite spectra, we find that the 24 µm detected cluster and group galaxies exhibit elevated levels of Balmer absorption compared with galaxies undergoing normal, continuous star formation. A similar excess is not observed in field galaxies with equivalent infrared luminosities, indicating a greater fraction of the detected cluster and group members have experienced a burst of star formation in the recent past compared to their counterparts in the field. Our results suggest that gas-rich galaxies at high redshift experience a temporary increase in their star formation activity as they assemble into denser environments. Using Hubble Space Telescope Advanced Camera for Surveys imaging, we find that disturbed morphologies are common among the 24 µm detected cluster and group members and become more prevalent in regions of higher galaxy density. We conclude that mergers are the dominant triggering mechanism responsible for the enhanced star formation found in the C11604 groups, while a mix of harassment and mergers are likely driving the activity of the cluster galaxies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present photometric redshifts and associated probability distributions for all detected sources in the Extended Chandra Deep Field South (ECDFS). This work makes use of the most up-to-date data from the Cosmic Assembly Near-IR Deep Legacy Survey (CANDELS) and the Taiwan ECDFS Near-Infrared Survey (TENIS) in addition to other data. We also revisit multi-wavelength counterparts for published X-ray sources from the 4 Ms CDFS and 250 ks ECDFS surveys, finding reliable counterparts for 1207 out of 1259 sources (∼96%). Data used for photometric redshifts include intermediate-band photometry deblended using the TFIT method, which is used for the first time in this work. Photometric redshifts for X-ray source counterparts are based on a new library of active galactic nuclei/galaxy hybrid templates appropriate for the faint X-ray population in the CDFS. Photometric redshift accuracy for normal galaxies is 0.010 and for X-ray sources is 0.014 and outlier fractions are 4% and 5.2%, respectively. The results within the CANDELS coverage area are even better, as demonstrated both by spectroscopic comparison and by galaxy-pair statistics. Intermediate-band photometry, even if shallow, is valuable when combined with deep broadband photometry. For best accuracy, templates must include emission lines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present Keck-I MOSFIRE near-infrared spectroscopy for a sample of 13 compact star-forming galaxies (SFGs) at redshift 2 ⩽ z ⩽ 2.5 with star formation rates of SFR ∼ 100 M☼ yr–1 and masses of log(M/M☼) ∼10.8. Their high integrated gas velocity dispersions of σint km s–1, as measured from emission lines of Hα and [O III], and the resultant M⋆-σint relation and M⋆-Mdyn all match well to those of compact quiescent galaxies at z ∼ 2, as measured from stellar absorption lines. Since log(M⋆/Mdyn) =–0.06 ± 0.2 dex, these compact SFGs appear to be dynamically relaxed and evolved, i.e., depleted in gas and dark matter (<13%), and present larger σint than their non-compact SFG counterparts at the same epoch. Without infusion of external gas, depletion timescales are short, less than ∼300 Myr. This discovery adds another link to our new dynamical chain of evidence that compact SFGs at z ≳ 2 are already losing gas to become the immediate progenitors of compact quiescent galaxies by z ∼ 2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We use CANDELS imaging, 3D-HST spectroscopy, and Chandra X-ray data to investigate if active galactic nuclei (AGNs) are preferentially fueled by violent disk instabilities funneling gas into galaxy centers at 1.3 < z < 2.4. We select galaxies undergoing gravitational instabilities using the number of clumps and degree of patchiness as proxies. The CANDELS visual classification system is used to identify 44 clumpy disk galaxies, along with mass-matched comparison samples of smooth and intermediate morphology galaxies. We note that despite being mass-matched and having similar star formation rates, the smoother galaxies tend to be smaller disks with more prominent bulges compared to the clumpy galaxies. The lack of smooth extended disks is probably a general feature of the z ∼ 2 galaxy population, and means we cannot directly compare with the clumpy and smooth extended disks observed at lower redshift. We find that z ∼ 2 clumpy galaxies have slightly enhanced AGN fractions selected by integrated line ratios (in the mass-excitation method), but the spatially resolved line ratios indicate this is likely due to extended phenomena rather than nuclear AGNs. Meanwhile, the X-ray data show that clumpy, smooth, and intermediate galaxies have nearly indistinguishable AGN fractions derived from both individual detections and stacked non-detections. The data demonstrate that AGN fueling modes at z ∼ 1.85—whether violent disk instabilities or secular processes—are as efficient in smooth galaxies as they are in clumpy galaxies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Cl 1604 supercluster at z ∼ 0.9 is one of the most extensively studied high-redshift large-scale structures, with more than 500 spectroscopically confirmed members. It consists of eight clusters and groups, with members numbering from a dozen to nearly a hundred, providing a broad range of environments for investigating the large-scale environmental effects on galaxy evolution. Here we examine the properties of 48 post-starburst galaxies in Cl 1604, comparing them to other galaxy populations in the same supercluster. Incorporating photometry from ground-based optical and near-infrared imaging, along with Spitzer mid-infrared observations, we derive stellar masses for all Cl 1604 members. The colors and stellar masses of the K+A galaxies support the idea that they are progenitors of red sequence galaxies. Their morphologies, residual star formation rates, and spatial distributions suggest that galaxy mergers may be the principal mechanism producing post-starburst galaxies. Interaction between galaxies and the dense intracluster medium (ICM) is also effective, but only in the cores of dynamically evolved clusters. The prevalence of post-starburst galaxies in clusters correlates with the dynamical state of the host cluster, as both galaxy mergers and the dense ICM produce post-starburst galaxies. We also investigate the incompleteness and contamination of K+A samples selected by means of Hδ and [O II] equivalent widths. K+A samples may be up to ∼50% incomplete due to the presence of LINERs/Seyferts, and up to ∼30% of K+A galaxies could have substantial star formation activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Exploiting the deep high-resolution imaging of all five CANDELS fields, and accurate redshift information provided by 3D-HST, we investigate the relation between structure and stellar populations for a mass-selected sample of 6764 galaxies above 1010M☼, spanning the redshift range 0.5 < z < 2.5. For the first time, we fit two-dimensional models comprising a single Sérsic fit and two-component (i.e., bulge + disk) decompositions not only to the H-band light distributions, but also to the stellar mass maps reconstructed from resolved stellar population modeling. We confirm that the increased bulge prominence among quiescent galaxies, as reported previously based on rest-optical observations, remains in place when considering the distributions of stellar mass. Moreover, we observe an increase of the typical Sérsic index and bulge-to-total ratio (with median B/T reaching 40%-50%) among star-forming galaxies above 1011M☼. Given that quenching for these most massive systems is likely to be imminent, our findings suggest that significant bulge growth precedes a departure from the star-forming main sequence. We demonstrate that the bulge mass (and ideally knowledge of the bulge and total mass) is a more reliable predictor of the star-forming versus quiescent state of a galaxy than the total stellar mass. The same trends are predicted by the state-of-the-art, semi-analytic model by Somerville et al. In this model, bulges and black holes grow hand in hand through merging and/or disk instabilities, and feedback from active galactic nuclei shuts off star formation. Further observations will be required to pin down star formation quenching mechanisms, but our results imply that they must be internal to the galaxies and closely associated with bulge growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The shutdown of star formation in galaxies is generally termed “quenching.” Quenching may occur through a variety of processes, e.g., active galactic nucleus (AGN) feedback, stellar feedback, or the shock heating of gas in the dark matter halo. However, which mechanism(s) is, in fact, responsible for quenching is still in question. This paper addresses quenching by searching for traces of possible quenching processes through their effects on galaxy structural parameters such as stellar mass (M*), M*/re, surface stellar mass density (∼M*/r2e), and Sérsic index (n). We analyze the rest-frame U – B color correlations versus these structural parameters using a sample of galaxies in the redshift range 0.5 ⩽ z < 0.8 from the DEEP2/AEGIS survey. In addition to global radii, stellar masses, and Sérsic parameters, we also use “bulge” and “disk” photometric measurements from GIM2D fits to HST/ACS V and I images. We assess the tightness of the color relationships by measuring their “overlap regions,” defined as the area in color-parameter space in which red and blue galaxies overlap; the parameter that minimizes these overlap regions is considered to be the most effective color discriminator. We find that Sérsic index (n) has the smallest overlap region among all tested parameters and resembles a step function with a threshold value of n = 2.3. There exists, however, a significant population of outliers with blue colors yet high n values that seem to contradict this behavior; they make up ≈40% of n > 2.3 galaxies. We hypothesize that their Sérsic values may be distorted by bursts of star formation, AGNs, and/or poor fits, leading us to consider central surface stellar mass density, Σ*1 kpc, as an alternative to Sérsic index. Not only does Σ*1 kpc correct the outliers, but it also forms a tight relationship with color, suggesting that the innermost structure of galaxies is most physically linked with quenching. Furthermore, at z ∼ 0.65, the majority of the blue cloud galaxies cannot simply fade onto the red sequence since their GIM2D bulge masses are only half as large on average as the bulge masses of similar red sequence galaxies, thus demonstrating that stellar mass must absolutely increase at the centers of galaxies as they quench. We discuss a two-stage model for quenching in which galaxy star formation rates are controlled by their dark halos while they are still in the blue cloud and a second quenching process sets in later, associated with the central stellar mass buildup. The mass buildup is naturally explained by any non-axisymmetric features in the potential, such as those induced by mergers and/or disk instabilities. However, the identity of the second quenching agent is still unknown. We have placed our data catalog online. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present measurements of the specific ultraviolet luminosity density from a sample of 483 galaxies at 6 ≲ z ≲ 8. These galaxies were selected from new deep near-infrared Hubble Space Telescope imaging from the Cosmic Assembly Near-infrared Deep Extragalactic Legacy Survey, Hubble UltraDeep Field 2009, and Wide Field Camera 3 Early Release Science programs. We investigate the contribution to reionization from galaxies that we observe directly, thus sidestepping the uncertainties inherent in complementary studies that have invoked assumptions regarding the intrinsic shape or the faint-end cutoff of the galaxy ultraviolet (UV) luminosity function. Due to our larger survey volume, wider wavelength coverage, and updated assumptions about the clumping of gas in the intergalactic medium (IGM), we find that the observable population of galaxies can sustain a fully reionized IGM at z = 6, if the average ionizing photon escape fraction (fesc) is ∼30%. Our result contrasts with a number of previous studies that have measured UV luminosity densities at these redshifts that vary by a factor of five, with many concluding that galaxies could not complete reionization by z = 6 unless a large population of galaxies fainter than the detection limit were invoked, or extremely high values of fesc were present. The specific UV luminosity density from our observed galaxy samples at z = 7 and 8 is not sufficient to maintain a fully reionized IGM unless fesc > 50%. We examine the contribution from galaxies in different luminosity ranges and find that the sub-L* galaxies we detect are stronger contributors to the ionizing photon budget than the L > L* population, unless fesc is luminosity dependent. Combining our observations with constraints on the emission rate of ionizing photons from Lyα forest observations at z = 6, we find that we can constrain fesc < 34% (2σ) if the observed galaxies are the only contributors to reionization, or <13% (2σ) if the luminosity function extends to a limiting magnitude of MUV = –13. These escape fractions are sufficient to sustain an ionized IGM by z = 6. Current constraints on the high-redshift galaxy population imply that the volume ionized fraction of the IGM, while consistent with unity at z ⩽ 6, appears to drop at redshifts not much higher than 7, consistent with a number of complementary reionization probes. If faint galaxies dominated the ionizing photon budget at z = 6-7, future extremely deep observations with the James Webb Space Telescope will probe deep enough to directly observe them, providing an indirect constraint on the global ionizing photon escape fraction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We study the evolution of galaxy rest-frame ultraviolet (UV) colors in the epoch 4 ≲ z ≲ 8. We use new wide-field near-infrared data in the Great Observatories Origins Deep Survey-South field from the Cosmic Assembly Near-infrared Deep Extragalactic Legacy Survey, Hubble Ultra Deep Field (HUDF) 2009, and Early Release Science programs to select galaxies via photometric redshift measurements. Our sample consists of 2812 candidate galaxies at z ≳ 3.5, including 113 at z ≃ 7-8. We fit the observed spectral energy distribution to a suite of synthetic stellar population models and measure the value of the UV spectral slope (β) from the best-fit model spectrum. We run simulations to show that this measurement technique results in a smaller scatter on β than other methods, as well as a reduced number of galaxies with catastrophically incorrect β measurements (i.e., Δβ > 1). We find that the median value of β evolves significantly from –1.82+0.00– 0.04 at z = 4 to –2.37+0.26– 0.06 at z = 7. Additionally, we find that faint galaxies at z = 7 have β = –2.68+0.39– 0.24 (∼ –2.4 after correcting for observational bias); this is redder than previous claims in the literature and does not require “exotic” stellar populations (e.g., very low metallicities or top-heavy initial mass functions) to explain their colors. This evolution can be explained by an increase in dust extinction, from low amounts at z = 7 to AV ∼ 0.5 mag at z = 4. The timescale for this increase is consistent with low-mass asymptotic giant branch stars forming the bulk of the dust. We find no significant (<2σ) correlation between β and MUV when measuring MUV at a consistent rest-frame wavelength of 1500 Å. This is particularly true at bright magnitudes, though our results do show evidence for a weak correlation at faint magnitudes when galaxies in the HUDF are considered separately, hinting that dynamic range in sample luminosities may play a role. We do find a strong correlation between β and the stellar mass at all redshifts, in that more massive galaxies exhibit redder colors. The most massive galaxies in our sample have similarly red colors at each redshift, implying that dust can build up quickly in massive galaxies and that feedback is likely removing dust from low-mass galaxies at z ⩾ 7. Thus, the stellar-mass—metallicity relation, previously observed up to z ∼ 3, may extend out to z = 7-8. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We perform a detailed analysis of the resolved colors and stellar populations of a complete sample of 323 star-forming galaxies (SFGs) at 0.5 < z < 1.5 and 326 SFGs at 1.5 < z < 2.5 in the ERS and CANDELS-Deep region of GOODS-South. Galaxies were selected to be more massive than 1010M☼ and have specific star formation rates (SFRs) above 1/tH. We model the seven-band optical ACS + near-IR WFC3 spectral energy distributions of individual bins of pixels, accounting simultaneously for the galaxy-integrated photometric constraints available over a longer wavelength range. We analyze variations in rest-frame color, stellar surface mass density, age, and extinction as a function of galactocentric radius and local surface brightness/density, and measure structural parameters on luminosity and stellar mass maps. We find evidence for redder colors, older stellar ages, and increased dust extinction in the nuclei of galaxies. Big star-forming clumps seen in star formation tracers are less prominent or even invisible in the inferred stellar mass distributions. Off-center clumps contribute up to ∼20% to the integrated SFR, but only 7% or less to the integrated mass of all massive SFGs at z ∼ 1 and z ∼ 2, with the fractional contributions being a decreasing function of wavelength used to select the clumps. The stellar mass profiles tend to have smaller sizes and M20 coefficients, and higher concentration and Gini coefficients than the light distribution. Our results are consistent with an inside-out disk growth scenario with brief (100-200 Myr) episodic local enhancements in star formation superposed on the underlying disk. Alternatively, the young ages of off-center clumps may signal inward clump migration, provided this happens efficiently on the order of an orbital timescale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]