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Title: DESI z ≳ 5 Quasar Survey. I. A First Sample of 400 New Quasars at z ~ 4.7–6.6

Journal Article · · The Astrophysical Journal. Supplement Series
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  1. University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ (United States); University of Wyoming
  2. University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ (United States)
  3. University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY (United States)
  4. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); Université Paris-Saclay, Gif-sur-Yvette (France)
  5. Université Paris-Saclay, Gif-sur-Yvette (France)
  6. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)
  7. Boston University, MA (United States)
  8. Durham University (United Kingdom)
  9. University College London (United Kingdom)
  10. University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT (United States)
  11. Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (Mexico)
  12. National Science Foundations's National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory, Tucson, AZ (United States)
  13. Southern Methodist University, Dallas, TX (United States)
  14. University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI (United States); Ohio State University, Columbus, OH (United States)
  15. Institut de Física d'Altes Energies (IFAE), Barcelona (Spain)
  16. Ohio State University, Columbus, OH (United States)
  17. Sorbonne Université, Paris (France)
  18. NSF's NOIRLab, Tucson, AZ (United States)
  19. Institut de Física d'Altes Energies (IFAE), Barcelona (Spain); Institució Catalana de Recerca i Estudis Avançats, Barcelona (Spain)
  20. Siena College, Loudonville, NY (United States)
  21. Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing (China)
  22. University of Waterloo, ON (Canada)
  23. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States); University of California, Berkeley, CA (United States)
  24. Instituto de Astrofísica de Andalucía (CSIC), Granada (Spain)
  25. Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, MD (United States)
  26. University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI (United States)
  27. Stanford University, Menlo Park, CA (United States); Stanford University, CA (United States); SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (SLAC), Menlo Park, CA (United States)
+ Show Author Affiliations

We report the first results of a high-redshift (z ≳ 5) quasar survey using the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI). As a DESI secondary target program, this survey is designed to carry out a systematic search and investigation of quasars at 4.8 < z < 6.8. The target selection is based on the DESI Legacy Imaging Surveys (the Legacy Surveys) DR9 photometry, combined with the Pan-STARRS1 data and J-band photometry from public surveys. A first quasar sample has been constructed from the DESI Survey Validation 3 (SV3) and first-year observations until 2022 May. This sample includes more than 400 new quasars at redshift 4.7 ≤ z < 6.6, down to 21.5 magnitude (AB) in the z band, discovered from 35% of the entire target sample. Remarkably, there are 220 new quasars identified at z ≥ 5, more than one-third of existing quasars previously published at this redshift. The observations so far result in an average success rate of 23% at z > 4.7. The current spectral data set has already allowed analysis of interesting individual objects (e.g., quasars with damped Lyα absorbers and broad absorption line features), and statistical analysis will follow the survey's completion. A set of science projects will be carried out leveraging this program, including quasar luminosity function, quasar clustering, intergalactic medium, quasar spectral properties, intervening absorbers, and properties of early supermassive black holes. Additionally, a sample of 38 new quasars at z ~ 3.8–5.7 discovered from a pilot survey in the DESI SV1 is also published in this paper.

Research Organization:
University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC), High Energy Physics (HEP); National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA); National Science Foundation (NSF)
Grant/Contract Number:
SC0019022; AC02-05CH11231
OSTI ID:
2311857
Journal Information:
The Astrophysical Journal. Supplement Series, Journal Name: The Astrophysical Journal. Supplement Series Journal Issue: 1 Vol. 269; ISSN 0067-0049
Publisher:
IOP PublishingCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

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