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Dust-obscured quasars have been suspected as the intermediate stage galaxies between merger-driven star-forming galaxies and unobscured quasars. This merger-driven galaxy evolution scenario suggests that dust-obscured quasars exhibit higher Eddington ratios ($\lambda_{\rm Edd}$) than those of unobscured quasars. However, their high dust obscuration poses challenges to accurately measuring their $\lambda_{\rm Edd}$ using commonly employed bolometric luminosity ($L_{\rm bol}$) and black hole (BH) mass ($M_{\rm BH}$) estimators based on the ultraviolet (UV) or optical luminosity. Recently, Kim et al. (2023) established new estimators for $L_{\rm bol}$ and $M_{\rm BH}$ based on mid-infrared (MIR) continuum luminosity ($L_{\rm MIR}$), which are less affected by dust obscuration. These estimators enable the study of a large number of dust-obscured quasars across a wide redshift range. In this study, we measure the $\lambda_{\rm Edd}$ values of 30 dust-obscured quasars at $z \lesssim 1$, the largest sample size to date, using the $L_{\rm MIR}$-based $L_{\rm bol}$ and $M_{\rm BH}$ estimators. Our findings reveal that dust-obscured quasars exhibit significantly higher $\lambda_{\rm Edd}$ values compared to unobscured quasars. Moreover, we confirm that the enhanced $\lambda_{\rm Edd}$ values of dust-obscured quasars maintain consistency across the redshift span of 0 to 1. Our results strongly support the picture that dust-obscured quasars are in the earlier stage than unobscured quasars in the merger-driven galaxy evolutionary track., Comment: 15 pages, 13 figures, Accepted for publication in A&A

Over the past decades, nearly a million quasars have been explored to shed light on the evolution of supermassive black holes and galaxies. The ultraviolet-to-optical spectra of type-1 quasars particularly offer insights into their black hole activities. Recent findings, however, raise questions about the prevalence of red type-1 quasars of which colors might be due to dust-obscuration and their potential influence on luminosity-related properties of quasars. We examine the fraction of red type-1 quasars within the redshift range of $0.68\leq z < 2.20$, applying spectral energy distribution (SED) fitting using optical-to-MIR photometric data of Sloan Digital Sky Survey Data Release 14 quasars. Approximately 10\,\% of the type-1 quasars exhibit red colors suggestive of dust obscuration. There is an association between the brightness of the MIR luminosity and a higher fraction of red type-1 quasars, albeit with negligible redshift evolution. By employing $E(B-V)$ values from the SED fitting, we obtained dereddened luminosity of the red type-1 quasars and reassess the quasar luminosity function (QLF) and black hole mass ($M_{\rm BH}$) estimates. Result shows a modest increase in the number density of bright quasars, linking to more flatten bright-end slope of QLFs, while $M_{\rm BH}$ adjustments are minimal. Current SDSS selections in optical could miss a significant population of heavily dust-obscured quasars. As future MIR surveys like SPHEREx expand, they may reveal enough obscured quasars to prompt a more profound revision of fundamental quasar properties., Comment: 19 pages, 12 figures, 1 table. Accepted for publication in ApJ

We present bolometric luminosity ($L_{\rm bol}$) and black hole (BH) mass ($M_{\rm BH}$) estimators based on mid-infrared (MIR) continuum luminosity (hereafter, $L_{\rm MIR}$) that are measured from infrared (IR) photometric data. The $L_{\rm MIR}$-based estimators are relatively immune from dust extinction effects, hence they can be used for dust-obscured quasars. To derive the $L_{\rm bol}$ and $M_{\rm BH}$ estimators, we use unobscured quasars selected from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) quasar catalog, which have wide ranges of $L_{\rm bol}$ ($10^{44.62}$--$10^{46.16}$\,$\rm erg\,s^{-1}$) and $M_{\rm BH}$ ($10^{7.14}$--$10^{9.69}$\,$M_{\odot}$). We find empirical relations between (i) continuum luminosity at 5100\,$\rm{\AA{}}$ (hereafter, L5100) and $L_{\rm MIR}$; (ii) $L_{\rm bol}$ and $L_{\rm MIR}$. Using these relations, we derive the $L_{\rm MIR}$-based $L_{\rm bol}$ and $M_{\rm BH}$ estimators. We find that our estimators allow the determination of $L_{\rm bol}$ and $M_{\rm BH}$ at an accuracy of $\sim$0.2\,dex against the fiducial estimates based on the optical properties of the unobscured quasars. We apply the $L_{\rm MIR}$-based estimators to SDSS quasars at $z \lesssim 0.5$ including obscured ones. The ratios of $L_{\rm bol}$ from the $L_{\rm MIR}$-based estimators to those from the optical luminosity-based estimators become larger with the amount of the dust extinction, and a non-negligible fraction ($\sim$15\,\%) of the SDSS quasars exhibits ratios greater than 1.5. This result suggests that dust extinction can significantly affect physical parameter derivations even for SDSS quasars, and that dust extinction needs to be carefully taken into account when deriving quasar properties., Comment: 17 pages, 10 figures, 3 tables, Published in ApJ

We search for quasi-stellar objects (QSOs) in a wide area of the south ecliptic pole (SEP) field, which has been and will continue to be intensively explored through various space missions. For this purpose, we obtain deep broadband optical images of the SEP field covering an area of $\sim$$14.5\times14.5$ deg$^2$ with the Korea Microlensing Telescope Network. The 5$\sigma$ detection limits for point sources in the $BVRI$ bands are estimated to be $\sim$22.59, 22.60, 22.98, and 21.85 mag, respectively. Utilizing data from Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, unobscured QSO candidates are selected among the optically point-like sources using the mid-infrared (MIR) and optical-MIR colors. To further refine our selection and eliminate any contamination not adequately removed by the color-based selection, we perform the spectral energy distribution fitting with archival photometric data ranging from optical to MIR. As a result, we identify a total of 2,383 unobscured QSO candidates in the SEP field. We also apply a similar method to the north ecliptic pole field using the Pan-STARRS data and obtain a similar result of identifying 2,427 candidates. The differential number count per area of our QSO candidates is in good agreement with those measured from spectroscopically confirmed ones in other fields. Finally, we compare the results with the literature and discuss how this work will be implicated in future studies, especially with the upcoming space missions., Comment: 14 pages, 9 figures, accepted for publication in ApJS

We report the discovery of four quasars with $M_{1450} \gtrsim -25.0$ mag at $z\sim5$ and supermassive black hole mass measurement for one of the quasars. They were selected as promising high-redshift quasar candidates via deep learning and Bayesian information criterion, which are expected to be effective in discriminating quasars from the late-type stars and high-redshift galaxies. The candidates were observed by the Double Spectrograph on the Palomar 200-inch Hale Telescope. They show clear Ly$\alpha$ breaks at about 7000-8000 \r{A}, indicating they are quasars at $4.7 < z < 5.6$. For HSC J233107-001014, we measure the mass of its supermassive black hole (SMBH) using its C\Romannum{4}$\lambda 1549$ emission line. The SMBH mass and Eddington ratio of the quasar are found to be $\sim 10^8 M_{\odot}$ and $\sim 0.6$, respectively. This suggests that this quasar possibly harbors a fast growing SMBH near the Eddington limit despite its faintness ($L_{\rm Bol} < 10^{46}$ erg s$^{-1}$). Our 100 $\%$ quasar identification rate supports high efficiency of our deep learning and Bayesian information criterion selection method, which can be applied to future surveys to increase high-redshift quasar sample., Comment: 8 pages, 5 figures, Accepted for publication in JKAS

Understanding the faint end of quasar luminosity function at a high redshift is important since the number density of faint quasars is a critical element in constraining ultraviolet (UV) photon budgets for ionizing the intergalactic medium (IGM) in the early universe. Here, we present quasar LF reaching $M_{1450} \sim -22.0$ AB mag at $z\sim5$, about one magnitude deeper than previous UV LFs. We select quasars at $z\sim5$ with a deep learning technique from deep data taken by the Hyper Suprime-Cam Subaru Strategic Program (HSC-SSP), covering a 15.5 deg$^2$ area. Beyond the traditional color selection method, we improved the quasar selection by training an artificial neural network for distinguishing $z\sim5$ quasars from non-quasar sources based on their colors and adopting the Bayesian information criterion that can further remove high-redshift galaxies from the quasar sample. When applied to a small sample of spectroscopically identified quasars and galaxies, our method is successful in selecting quasars at $\sim83 \%$ efficiency ($5/6$) while minimizing the contamination rate of high-redshift galaxies ($1/8$) by up to three times compared to the selection using color selection alone ($3/8$). The number of our final quasar candidates with $M_{1450} < -22.0$ mag is 35. Our quasar UV LF down to $M_{1450} = -22$ mag or even fainter ($M_{1450} = -21$ mag) suggests a rather low number density of faint quasars and the faint-end slope of $-1.6^{+0.21}_{-0.19}$, favoring a scenario where quasars play a minor role in ionizing the IGM at high redshift., Comment: 19 pages, 8 figures, Accepted for publication in ApJ

We present the result of the Infrared Medium-deep Survey (IMS) $z\sim6$ quasar survey, using the combination of the IMS near-infrared images and the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope Legacy Survey (CFHTLS) optical images. The traditional color-selection method results in 25 quasar candidates over $86$ deg$^{2}$. We introduce the corrected Akaike Information Criterion (AICc) with the high-redshift quasar and late-type star models to prioritize the candidates efficiently. Among the color-selected candidates, seven plausible candidates finally passed the AICc selection of which three are known quasars at $z\sim6$. The follow-up spectroscopic observations for the remaining four candidates were carried out, and we confirmed that two out of four are $z\sim6$ quasars. With this complete sample, we revisited the quasar space density at $z\sim6$ down to $M_{1450}\sim-23.5$ mag. Our result supports the low quasar space density at the luminosity where the quasar's ultraviolet ionizing emissivity peaks, favoring a minor contribution of quasars to the cosmic reionization., Comment: 21 pages, 13 figures, 4 tables. Accepted for publication in AJ

Galaxies and their central supermassive black holes are known to coevolve, but the physical background for this is unknown as of yet. The High-$z$ Universe probed via Lensing by QSOs (HULQ) project aims to investigate this coevolution by using quasi-stellar object (QSO) host galaxies acting as gravitational lenses (QSO lenses). We present the results of the spectroscopic observation of the first QSO lens candidate from the HULQ project, HULQ J0002+0239, which consists of a QSO host galaxy at $z_{\rm d} = 1.455$ and four seemingly lensed objects in a cross-like configuration. Deep optical spectra of two of the possibly lensed objects with $z \sim 24.5$ mag were obtained with the Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph on the Gemini North Telescope. Their spectra reveal that the objects are newly discovered galaxies at $z=0.29$ and $z=1.11$, and we conclude that HULQ J0002+0239 is not a QSO lens. Our QSO lens search results are so far in agreement with the predicted number of QSO lenses, and we discuss how the future investigation of additional QSO lens candidates could tell us more about the evolution of the black hole mass and host galaxy scaling relations., Comment: 15 pages, 8 figures, 3 tables; accepted for publication in A&A

We present new results of a 12CO(J=1-0) imaging survey using the Atacama Compact Array (ACA) for 31 HI detected galaxies in the IC 1459 and NGC 4636 groups. This is the first CO imaging survey for loose galaxy groups. We obtained well-resolved CO data (~0.7-1.5 kpc) for a total of 16 galaxies in two environments. By comparing our ACA CO data with the HI and UV data, we probe the impacts of the group environment on the cold gas components (CO and HI gas) and star formation activity. We find that CO and/or HI morphologies are disturbed in our group members, some of which show highly asymmetric CO distributions (e.g., IC 5264, NGC 7421, and NGC 7418). In comparison with isolated galaxies in the xCOLD GASS sample, our group galaxies tend to have low star formation rates and low H2 gas fractions. Our findings suggest that the group environment can change the distribution of cold gas components, including the molecular gas, and star formation properties of galaxies. This is supporting evidence that preprocessing in the group-like environment can play an important role in galaxy evolution., Comment: 42 pages, 29 figures, 6 tables, published in ApJS

Quasar luminosity function (QLF) shows the active galactic nucleus (AGN) demography as a result of the combination of the growth and the evolution of black holes, galaxies, and dark matter halos along the cosmic time. The recent wide and deep surveys have improved the census of high-redshift quasars, making it possible to construct reliable ultraviolet (UV) QLFs at $2\lesssim z\lesssim6$ down to $M_{1450}=-23$ mag. By parameterizing these up-to-date observed UV QLFs that are the most extensive in both luminosity and survey area coverage at a given redshift, we show that the UV QLF has a universal shape, and their evolution can be approximated by a pure density evolution (PDE). In order to explain the observed QLF, we construct a model QLF employing the halo mass function, a number of empirical scaling relations, and the Eddington ratio distribution. We also include the outshining of AGN over its host galaxy, which made it possible to reproduce a moderately flat shape of the faint end of the observed QLF (slope of $\sim-1.1$). This model successfully explains the observed PDE behavior of UV QLF at $z>2$, meaning that the QLF evolution at high redshift can be understood under the framework of halo mass function evolution. The importance of the outshining effect in our model also implies that there could be a hidden population of faint AGNs ($M_{1450}\gtrsim-24$ mag), which are buried under their host galaxy light., Comment: 9 pages, 4 figures, 1 table, accepted for publication in ApJ Letters

Faint $z\sim5$ quasars with $M_{1450}\sim-23$ mag are known to be the potentially important contributors to the ultraviolet ionizing background in the post-reionization era. However, their number density has not been well determined, making it difficult to assess their role in the early ionization of the intergalactic medium (IGM). In this work, we present the updated results of our $z\sim5$ quasar survey using the Infrared Medium-deep Survey (IMS), a near-infrared imaging survey covering an area of 85 deg$^{2}$. From our spectroscopic observations with the Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph (GMOS) on the Gemini-South 8 m Telescope, we discovered eight new quasars at $z\sim5$ with $-26.1\leq M_{1450} \leq -23.3$. Combining our IMS faint quasars ($M_{1450}>-27$ mag) with the brighter Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) quasars ($M_{1450}<-27$ mag), we derive the $z\sim5$ quasar luminosity function (QLF) without any fixed parameters down to the magnitude limit of $M_{1450}=-23$ mag. We find that the faint-end slope of the QLF is very flat ($\alpha=-1.2^{+1.4}_{-0.6}$), with a characteristic luminosity of $M^{*}_{1450}=-25.8^{+1.4}_{-1.1}$ mag. The number density of $z\sim5$ quasars from the QLF gives an ionizing emissivity at 912 $\unicode{x212B}$ of $\epsilon_{912}=(3.7$--$7.1)\times10^{23}$ erg s$^{-1}$ Hz$^{-1}$ Mpc$^{-3}$ and an ionizing photon density of $\dot{n}_{\rm ion}=(3.0$--$5.7)\times10^{49}$ Mpc$^{-3}$ s$^{-1}$. These results imply that quasars are responsible for only 10-20% (up to 50% even in the extreme case) of the photons required to completely ionize the IGM at $z\sim5$, disfavoring the idea that quasars alone could have ionized the IGM at $z\sim5$., Comment: 21 pages, 14 figures, 7 tables. Accepted for publication in ApJ

The intergalactic medium (IGM) at $z\sim$ 5 to 6 is largely ionized, and yet the main source for the IGM ionization in the early universe is uncertain. Of the possible contributors are faint quasars with $-26 \lesssim M_{\rm 1450} \lesssim -23$, but their number density is poorly constrained at $z\sim5$. In this paper, we present our survey of faint quasars at $z\sim5$ in the European Large-Area {\it ISO} Survey-North 1 (ELAIS-N1) field over a survey area of 6.51 deg$^2$ and examine if such quasars can be the dominant source of the IGM ionization. We use the deep optical/near-infrared data of the ELAIS-N1 field as well as the additional medium-band observations to find $z \sim 5$ quasars through a two-step approach using the broadband color selection, and SED fitting with the medium-band information included. Adopting Bayesian information criterion, we identify ten promising quasar candidates. Spectra of three of the candidates are obtained, confirming all of them to be quasars at $z\sim5$ and supporting the reliability of the quasar selection. Using the promising candidates, we derive the $z\sim5$ quasar luminosity function at $-26 \lesssim M_{\rm 1450} \lesssim -23$. The number density of faint $z\sim5$ quasars in the ELAIS-N1 field is consistent with several previous results that quasars are not the main contributors to the IGM-ionizing photons at $z\sim5$, Comment: 16 pages, 9 figures, 4 tables. Accepted for publication in ApJ

High-redshift galaxy clusters, unlike local counterparts, show diverse star formation activities. However, it is still unclear what keeps some of the high-redshift clusters active in star formation. To address this issue, we performed a multi-object spectroscopic (MOS) observation of 226 high-redshift (0.8 < z < 1.3) galaxies in galaxy cluster candidates and the areas surrounding them. Our spectroscopic observation reveals six to eight clusters/groups at z ~ 0.9 and z ~ 1.3. The redshift measurements demonstrate the reliability of our photometric redshift measurements, which in turn gives credibility for using photometric redshift members for the analysis of large-scale structures (LSSs). Our investigation of the large-scale environment (~10 Mpc) surrounding each galaxy cluster reveals LSSs --- structures up to ~10 Mpc scale --- around many of, but not all, the confirmed overdensities and the cluster candidates. We investigate the correlation between quiescent galaxy fraction of galaxy overdensities and their surrounding LSSs, with a larger sample of ~ 20 overdensities including photometrically selected overdensities at 0.6 < z < 0.9. Interestingly, galaxy overdensities embedded within these extended LSSs show a lower fraction of quiescent galaxies (~ 20 %) than isolated ones at similar redshifts (with a quiescent galaxy fraction of ~ 50 %). Furthermore, we find a possible indication that clusters/groups with a high quiescent galaxy fraction are more centrally concentrated. Based on these results, we suggest that LSSs are the main reservoirs of gas and star-forming galaxies to keep galaxy clusters fresh and extended in size at z ~ 1., Comment: 56 pages, 23 figures, 4 tables, published in MNRAS

Recent simulation studies suggest that the supermassive black hole (SMBH) growth in the early universe may precede the prolonged intense star formation within its host galaxy, instead of quasars appearing after the obscured dusty star formation phase. If so, high-redshift quasars with low Eddington ratios ($\lambda_{\rm Edd}$) would be found in actively star-forming hosts with a star formation rate (SFR) of $>100~M_{\odot}$ yr$^{-1}$. We present the sub-mm observations of IMS J2204+0112, a faint quasar with a quasar bolometric luminosity of $L_{\rm bol}=4.2\times10^{12}~L_{\odot}$ and a low $\lambda_{\rm Edd}$ of only 0.1 at $z\sim6$, carried out with the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA). From its sub-mm fluxes, we measure the rest-frame far-infrared (FIR) luminosity of $L_{\rm FIR}=(3$--$4)\times10^{12}~L_{\odot}$. Interestingly, the derived host galaxy's SFR is $\sim500$--$700~M_{\odot}$ yr$^{-1}$, an order of magnitude higher than those of the $L_{\rm bol}$-matched $z\gtrsim6$ quasars with high $\lambda_{\rm Edd}$. Similar FIR excesses are also found for five $z\gtrsim6$ low-$\lambda_{\rm Edd}$ quasars ($\lambda_{\rm Edd}<0.2$) in the literature. We show that the overall SFR, $M_{\rm BH}$, and $\lambda_{\rm Edd}$ distributions of these and other sub-mm-detected quasars at $z\gtrsim6$ can be explained with the evolutionary track of high-redshift quasars in a simulation study where low $\lambda_{\rm Edd}$ and high SFR quasars are expected at the end of the SMBH growth. This suggests that the nuclear activities of the low $\lambda_{\rm Edd}$, high $L_{\rm FIR}$ quasars are on the brink of being turned off, while their host galaxies continue to form the bulk of their stars at SFR $>100~M_{\odot}$ yr$^{-1}$., Comment: 15 pages, 7 figures, 3 tables. Accepted for publication in ApJ

Intensive Monitoring Survey of Nearby Galaxies (IMSNG) is a high cadence observation program monitoring nearby galaxies with high probabilities of hosting supernovae (SNe). IMSNG aims to constrain the SN explosion mechanism by inferring sizes of SN progenitor systems through the detection of the shock-heated emission that lasts less than a few days after the SN explosion. To catch the signal, IMSNG utilizes a network of 0.5-m to 1-m class telescopes around the world and monitors the images of 60 nearby galaxies at distances D < 50 Mpc to a cadence as short as a few hours. The target galaxies are bright in near-ultraviolet (NUV) with M_NUV < -18.4 AB mag and have high probabilities of hosting SNe (0.06 SN/yr per galaxy). With this strategy, we expect to detect the early light curves of 3.4 SNe per year to a depth of R ~ 19.5 mag, enabling us to detect the shock-heated emission from a progenitor star with a radius as small as 0.1 R_sun. The accumulated data will be also useful for studying faint features around the target galaxies and other science projects. So far, 18 SNe have occurred in our target fields (16 in IMSNG galaxies) over 5 years, confirming our SN rate estimate of 0.06 SN/yr per galaxy., Comment: 11 pages, 6 figures, to be published in the Journal of Korean Astronomical Society, February 2019 issue

The faint quasars with $M_{1450}>-24$ mag are known to hold the key to the determination of the ultraviolet emissivity for the cosmic re-ionization. But only a few have been identified so far because of the limitations on the survey data. Here, we present the first results of the $z\sim5$ faint quasar survey with the Infrared Medium-deep Survey (IMS), which covers $\sim100$ deg$^{2}$ areas in $J$-band to the depths of $J_{\rm AB}\sim23$ mag. To improve selection methods, the medium-band follow-up imaging has been carried out using the SED camera for QUasars in Early uNiverse (SQUEAN) on the Otto Struve 2.1 m Telescope. The optical spectra of the candidates were obtained with 8-m class telescopes. We newly discovered 10 quasars with $-25

To date, most of the luminous quasars known at $z\sim6$ have been found to be in maximal accretion with the Eddington ratios, $\lambda_{\rm{Edd}}\sim1$, suggesting enhanced nuclear activities in the early universe. However, this may not be the whole picture of supermassive black hole (SMBH) growth since previous studies have not reached on faint quasars that are more likely to harbor SMBHs with low $\lambda_{\rm{Edd}}$. To gain a better understanding on the accretion activities in quasars in the early universe, we obtained a deep near-infrared (NIR) spectrum of a quasar, IMS J220417.92+011144.8 (hereafter IMS J2204+0112), one of the faintest quasars that have been identified at $z\sim6$. From the redshifted C IV $\lambda 1549$ emission line in the NIR spectrum, we find that IMS J2204+0112 harbors a SMBH with about a billion solar mass and $\lambda_{\rm{Edd}} \sim 0.1$, but with a large uncertainty in both quantities (0.41 dex). IMS J2204+0112 has one of the lowest Eddington ratios among quasars at $z\sim6$, but a common value among quasars at $z\sim2$. Its low $\lambda_{\rm{Edd}}$ can be explained with two scenarios; the SMBH growth from a stellar mass black hole through short-duration super-Eddington accretion events or from a massive black hole seed ($\sim10^{5}\,M_{\odot}$) with Eddington-limited accretion. NIR spectra of more faint quasars are needed to better understand the accretion activities of SMBHs at $z \sim 6$., Comment: 10 pages, 4 figures, 3 tables. Accepted for publication in ApJ

We present our first results of the survey for high redshift quasars at $5 \lesssim {\rm z} \lesssim 5.7$. The search for quasars in this redshift range has been known to be challenging due to limitations of filter sets used in previous studies. We conducted a quasar survey for two specific redshift ranges, 4.60 $\leq$ z $\leq$ 5.40 and 5.50 $\leq$ z $\leq$ 6.05, using multi-wavelength data that include observations using custom-designed filters, $is$ and $iz$. Using these filters and a new selection technique, we were able to reduce the fraction of interlopers. Through optical spectroscopy, we confirmed seven quasars at 4.7 $\leq$ z $\leq$ 5.4 with $-27.4 < M_{1450} < -26.4$ which were discovered independently by another group recently. We estimated black hole masses and Eddington ratios of four of these quasars from optical and near-infrared spectra, and found that these quasars are undergoing nearly Eddington-limited accretion which is consistent with the rapid growth of supermassive black holes in luminous quasars at z $\sim$ 5., Comment: 16 pages, 12 figures, and 9 tables. Accepted for publication in ApJS

Multiple color selection techniques have been successful in identifying quasars from wide-field broad-band imaging survey data. Among the quasars that have been discovered so far, however, there is a redshift gap at $5 \lesssim {\rm z} \lesssim 5.7$ due to the limitations of filter sets in previous studies. In this work, we present a new selection technique of high redshift quasars using a sequence of medium-band filters: nine filters with central wavelengths from 625 to 1025 nm and bandwidths of 50 nm. Photometry with these medium-bands traces the spectral energy distribution (SED) of a source, similar to spectroscopy with resolution R $\sim$ 15. By conducting medium-band observations of high redshift quasars at 4.7 $\leq$ z $\leq$ 6.0 and brown dwarfs (the main contaminants in high redshift quasar selection) using the SED camera for QUasars in EArly uNiverse (SQUEAN) on the 2.1-m telescope at the McDonald Observatory, we show that these medium-band filters are superior to multi-color broad-band color section in separating high redshift quasars from brown dwarfs. In addition, we show that redshifts of high redshift quasars can be determined to an accuracy of $\Delta{\rm z}/(1+{\rm z}) = 0.002$ -- $0.026$. The selection technique can be extended to z $\sim$ 7, suggesting that the medium-band observation can be powerful in identifying quasars even at the re-ionization epoch., Comment: 12 pages, 10 figures, 4 tables, accepted for publication in Journal of the Korean Astronomical Society

Recent studies suggest that faint active galactic nuclei may be responsible for the reionization of the universe. Confirmation of this scenario requires spectroscopic identification of faint quasars ($M_{1450}>-24$ mag) at $z \gtrsim6$, but only a very small number of such quasars have been spectroscopically identified so far. Here, we report the discovery of a faint quasar IMS J220417.92+011144.8 at z~6 in a 12.5 deg$^{2}$ region of the SA22 field of the Infrared Medium-deep Survey (IMS). The spectrum of the quasar shows a sharp break at $\sim8443~\rm{\AA}$, with emission lines redshifted to $z=5.944 \pm 0.002$ and rest-frame ultraviolet continuum magnitude $M_{1450}=-23.59\pm0.10$ AB mag. The discovery of IMS J220417.92+011144.8 is consistent with the expected number of quasars at z~6 estimated from quasar luminosity functions based on previous observations of spectroscopically identified low-luminosity quasars . This suggests that the number of $M_{1450}\sim-23$ mag quasars at z~6 may not be high enough to fully account for the reionization of the universe. In addition, our study demonstrates that faint quasars in the early universe can be identified effectively with a moderately wide and deep near-infrared survey such as the IMS., Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures, 1 table. Published in ApJ Letters

Activity at the centers of galaxies, during which the central supermassive black hole is accreting material, is nowadays accepted to be rather ubiquitous and most probably a phase of every galaxy's evolution. It has been suggested that galactic mergers and interactions may be the culprits behind the triggering of nuclear activity. We use near-infrared data from the new Infrared Medium-Deep Survey (IMS) and the Deep eXtragalactic Survey (DXS) of the VIMOS-SA22 field and radio data at 1.4 GHz from the FIRST survey and a deep VLA survey to study the environments of radio-AGN over an area of ~25 sq. degrees and down to a radio flux limit of 0.1 mJy and a J-band magnitude of 23 mag AB. Radio-AGN are predominantly found in environments similar to those of control galaxies at similar redshift, J-band magnitude, and U-R rest-frame absolute color. However, a sub-population of radio-AGN is found in environments up to 100 times denser than their control sources. We thus preclude merging as the dominant triggering mechanism of radio-AGN. Through the fitting of the broadband spectral energy distribution of radio-AGN in the least and most dense environments, we find that those in the least dense environments show higher radio-loudness, higher star formation efficiencies, and higher accretion rates, typical of the so-called high-excitation radio-AGN. These differences tend to disappear at z>1. We interpret our results in terms of a different triggering mechanism for these sources that is driven by mass-loss through winds of young stars created during the observed ongoing star formation., Comment: 22 pages, 19 figures, accepted for publication in the ApJ