REST-FRAME UV-OPTICALLY SELECTED GALAXIES AT 2.3 {approx}< z {approx}< 3.5: SEARCHING FOR DUSTY STAR-FORMING AND PASSIVELY EVOLVING GALAXIES
- Astronomy Department, University of Massachusetts, 710 N. Pleasant Street, Amherst, MA 01003 (United States)
- Space Telescope Science Institute, 3700 San Martin Drive, Baltimore, MD 21218 (United States)
- NOAO-Tucson, 950 North Cherry Avenue, Tucson, AZ 85719 (United States)
- Spitzer Science Center, California Institute of Technology, MS 220-6, Pasadena, CA 91125 (United States)
- Centro de Astronomia e Astrofisica da Universidade de Lisboa, Observatorio Astronomico de Lisboa, Tapada da Ajuda, 1349-018 Lisboa (Portugal)
- INAF-Osservatorio Astronomico di Trieste, Via Tiepolo 11, I-34131 Trieste (Italy)
- Institute of Astronomy and Astrophysics, Academia Sinica, Taipei 106, Taiwan (China)
- School of Physics, Korea Institute for Advanced Study, Hoegiro 87, Dongdaemun-Gu, Seoul 130-722 (Korea, Republic of)
- INAF-Osservatorio Astronomico di Roma, Via Frascati 33, I00040 Monteporzio (Italy)
- UCO/Lick Observatory, University of California, Santa Cruz, CA 95064 (United States)
- Yale Center for Astronomy and Astrophysics, Department of Physics, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520 (United States)
- Carnegie Observatories, 813 Santa Barbara Street, Pasadena, CA 91101-1292 (United States)
A new set of color selection criteria (VJL) analogous with the BzK method is designed to select both star-forming galaxies (SFGs) and passively evolving galaxies (PEGs) at 2.3 {approx}< z {approx}< 3.5 by using rest-frame UV-optical (V - J versus J - L) colors. The criteria are thoroughly tested with theoretical stellar population synthesis models and real galaxies with spectroscopic redshifts to evaluate their efficiency and contamination. We apply the well-tested VJL criteria to the HST/WFC3 Early Release Science field and study the physical properties of selected galaxies. The redshift distribution of selected SFGs peaks at z {approx} 2.7, slightly lower than that of Lyman break galaxies at z {approx} 3. Comparing the observed mid-infrared fluxes of selected galaxies with the prediction of pure stellar emission, we find that our VJL method is effective at selecting massive dusty SFGs that are missed by the Lyman break technique. About half of the star formation in massive (M{sub star} > 10{sup 10} M{sub Sun }) galaxies at 2.3 {approx}< z {approx}< 3.5 is contributed by dusty (extinction E(B - V) > 0.4) SFGs, which, however, only account for {approx}20% of the number density of massive SFGs. We also use the mid-infrared fluxes to clean our PEG sample and find that galaxy size can be used as a secondary criterion to effectively eliminate the contamination of dusty SFGs. The redshift distribution of the cleaned PEG sample peaks at z {approx} 2.5. We find six PEG candidates at z > 3 and discuss possible methods to distinguish them from dusty contamination. We conclude that at least part of our candidates are real PEGs at z {approx} 3, implying that these types of galaxies began to form their stars at z {approx}> 5. We measure the integrated stellar mass density (ISMD) of PEGs at z {approx} 2.5 and set constraints on it at z > 3. We find that the ISMD grows by at least about a factor of 10 in 1 Gyr at 3 < z <5 and by another factor of 10 in the next 3.5 Gyr (1 < z < 3).
- OSTI ID:
- 22020386
- Journal Information:
- Astrophysical Journal, Vol. 749, Issue 2; Other Information: Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0004-637X
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
EXPLORING THE GALAXY MASS-METALLICITY RELATION AT z {approx} 3-5
THE MOST MASSIVE GALAXIES AT 3.0 {<=} z < 4.0 IN THE NEWFIRM MEDIUM-BAND SURVEY: PROPERTIES AND IMPROVED CONSTRAINTS ON THE STELLAR MASS FUNCTION