CONSTRAINING DUST AND MOLECULAR GAS PROPERTIES IN Ly{alpha} BLOBS AT z {approx} 3
- Max-Planck-Institut fuer Astronomie, Koenigstuhl 17, Heidelberg (Germany)
- Laboratoire AIM, CEA/DSM-CNRS-Universite Paris Diderot, Irfu/Service d'Astrophysique, CEA-Saclay, Orme des Merisiers, 91191 Gif-sur-Yvette Cedex (France)
- Max-Planck-Insitut fuer Radioastronomie, Auf dem Huegel 69, D-53121 Bonn (Germany)
- National Optical Astronomy Observatory, 950 North Cherry Avenue, Tucson, AZ 85719 (United States)
- Institute of Astronomy, University of Cambridge, Madingley Road, Cambridge CB3 0HA (United Kingdom)
- Department of Physics, Broida Hall, Mail Code 9530, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA 93106 (United States)
- IRAM-Institut de Radio Astronomie Millimetrique, 300 rue de la Piscine, 38406 Saint-Martin d'Heres (France)
- IPAC, California Institute of Technology, 1200 East California Boulevard, Pasadena, CA 91125 (United States)
- Department of Physics, Durham University, South Road, Durham DH1 3LE (United Kingdom)
- Astronomical Institute, Tohoku University, Aramaki, Aoba-ku, Sendai, Miyagi 980-8578 (Japan)
- Research Center for Neutrino Science, Graduate School of Science, Tohoku University, Sendai 980-8578 (Japan)
- Leibnitz-Institut fuer Astrophysik Potsdam (AIP), An der Sternwarte 16, 14482 Potsdam (Germany)
In order to constrain the bolometric luminosities, dust properties, and molecular gas content of giant Ly{alpha} nebulae, the so-called Ly{alpha} blobs, we have carried out a study of dust continuum and CO line emission in two well-studied representatives of this population at z {approx} 3: an Ly{alpha} blob discovered by its strong Spitzer Multiband Infrared Photometer 24 {mu}m detection (LABd05) and the Steidel blob 1 (SSA22-LAB01). We find that the spectral energy distribution of LABd05 is well described by an active-galactic-nucleus-starburst composite template with L{sub FIR} = (4.0 {+-} 0.5) Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 12} L{sub Sun }, comparable to high-z submillimeter galaxies and ultraluminous infrared galaxies. New Large APEX Bolometer Camera 870 {mu}m measurements rule out the reported Submillimeter Common-User Bolometer Array detection of the SSA22-LAB01 (S{sub 850{mu}m} = 16.8 mJy) at the >4{sigma} level. Consistent with this, ultradeep Plateau de Bure Interferometer observations with {approx}2'' spatial resolution also fail to detect any 1.2 mm continuum source down to Almost-Equal-To 0.45 mJy beam{sup -1} (3{sigma}). Combined with the existing (sub)millimeter observations in the literature, we conclude that the FIR luminosity of SSA22-LAB01 remains uncertain. No CO line is detected in either case down to integrated flux limits of S{sub {nu}}{Delta}V {approx}< 0.25-1.0 Jy km s{sup -1}, indicating a modest molecular gas reservoir, M(H{sub 2}) < (1-3) Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 10} M{sub Sun }. The non-detections exclude, with high significance (12{sigma}), the previous tentative detection of a CO J = 4-3 line in the SSA22-LAB01. The increased sensitivity afforded by the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array will be critical in studying molecular gas and dust in these interesting systems.
- OSTI ID:
- 22004232
- Journal Information:
- Astrophysical Journal, Vol. 744, Issue 2; Other Information: Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0004-637X
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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