445 research outputs found
How to Measure Galaxy Star Formation Histories. II. Nonparametric Models
Nonparametric star formation histories (SFHs) have long promised to be the
`gold standard' for galaxy spectral energy distribution (SED) modeling as they
are flexible enough to describe the full diversity of SFH shapes, whereas
parametric models rule out a significant fraction of these shapes {\it a
priori}. However, this flexibility is not fully constrained even with
high-quality observations, making it critical to choose a well-motivated prior.
Here, we use the SED-fitting code \texttt{Prospector} to explore the effect of
different nonparametric priors by fitting SFHs to mock UV-IR photometry
generated from a diverse set of input SFHs. First, we confirm that
nonparametric SFHs recover input SFHs with less bias and return more accurate
errors than do parametric SFHs. We further find that, while nonparametric SFHs
robustly recover the overall shape of the input SFH, the primary determinant of
the size and shape of the posterior star formation rate (SFR) as a function of
time is the choice of prior, rather than the photometric noise. As a practical
demonstration, we fit the UV-IR photometry of 6000 galaxies from the GAMA
survey and measure inter-prior scatters in mass (0.1 dex), SFR (0.8 dex), and mass-weighted ages (0.2 dex), with the bluest
star-forming galaxies showing the most sensitivity. An important distinguishing
characteristic for nonparametric models is the characteristic timescale for
changes in SFR(t). This difference controls whether galaxies are assembled in
bursts or in steady-state star formation, corresponding respectively to
(feedback-dominated/accretion-dominated) models of galaxy formation and to
(larger/smaller) confidence intervals derived from SED-fitting. High-quality
spectroscopy has the potential to further distinguish between these proposed
models of SFR(t).Comment: replacing with ApJ accepted versio
The evolution of the galaxy stellar mass function over the last twelve billion years from a combination of ground-based and HST surveys
We present a new determination of the galaxy stellar mass function (GSMF)
over the redshift interval , derived from a combination
of ground-based and Hubble Space Telescope (HST) imaging surveys. Based on a
near-IR selected galaxy sample selected over a raw survey area of 3 deg
and spanning dex in stellar mass, we fit the GSMF with both single and
double Schechter functions, carefully accounting for Eddington bias to derive
both observed and intrinsic parameter values. We find that a double Schechter
function is a better fit to the GSMF at all redshifts, although the single and
double Schechter function fits are statistically indistinguishable by .
We find no evidence for significant evolution in , with the
intrinsic value consistent with over the full redshift range. Overall, our
determination of the GSMF is in good agreement with recent simulation results,
although differences persist at the highest stellar masses. Splitting our
sample according to location on the UVJ plane, we find that the star-forming
GSMF can be adequately described by a single Schechter function over the full
redshift range, and has not evolved significantly since . In
contrast, both the normalization and functional form of the passive GSMF
evolves dramatically with redshift, switching from a single to a double
Schechter function at . As a result, we find that while passive
galaxies dominate the integrated stellar-mass density at , they
only contribute per cent by . Finally, we provide a
simple parameterization that provides an accurate estimate of the GSMF, both
observed and intrinsic, at any redshift within the range .Comment: 24 pages, 16 figures, accepted for publication in MNRA
The abundance of z≳10 galaxy candidates in the HUDF using deep JWST NIRCam medium-band imaging
The VANDELS survey: Dust attenuation in star-forming galaxies at
We present the results of a new study of dust attenuation at redshifts based on a sample of star-forming galaxies from the VANDELS
spectroscopic survey. Motivated by results from the First Billion Years (FiBY)
simulation project, we argue that the intrinsic spectral energy distributions
(SEDs) of star-forming galaxies at these redshifts have a self-similar shape
across the mass range log probed by
our sample. Using FiBY data, we construct a set of intrinsic SED templates
which incorporate both detailed star formation and chemical abundance
histories, and a variety of stellar population synthesis (SPS) model
assumptions. With this set of intrinsic SEDs, we present a novel approach for
directly recovering the shape and normalization of the dust attenuation curve.
We find, across all of the intrinsic templates considered, that the average
attenuation curve for star-forming galaxies at is similar in shape
to the commonly-adopted Calzetti starburst law, with an average
total-to-selective attenuation ratio of . We show that the
optical attenuation () versus stellar mass () relation
predicted using our method is consistent with recent ALMA observations of
galaxies at in the \emph{Hubble} \emph{Ultra} \emph{Deep} \emph{Field}
(HUDF), as well as empirical relations predicted by a
Calzetti-like law. Our results, combined with other literature data, suggest
that the relation does not evolve over the redshift range
, at least for galaxies with log.
Finally, we present tentative evidence which suggests that the attenuation
curve may become steeper at log.Comment: 16 pages, 12 figures, accepted for publication in MNRA
The VANDELS survey: Dust attenuation in star-forming galaxies at
We present the results of a new study of dust attenuation at redshifts based on a sample of star-forming galaxies from the VANDELS
spectroscopic survey. Motivated by results from the First Billion Years (FiBY)
simulation project, we argue that the intrinsic spectral energy distributions
(SEDs) of star-forming galaxies at these redshifts have a self-similar shape
across the mass range log probed by
our sample. Using FiBY data, we construct a set of intrinsic SED templates
which incorporate both detailed star formation and chemical abundance
histories, and a variety of stellar population synthesis (SPS) model
assumptions. With this set of intrinsic SEDs, we present a novel approach for
directly recovering the shape and normalization of the dust attenuation curve.
We find, across all of the intrinsic templates considered, that the average
attenuation curve for star-forming galaxies at is similar in shape
to the commonly-adopted Calzetti starburst law, with an average
total-to-selective attenuation ratio of . We show that the
optical attenuation () versus stellar mass () relation
predicted using our method is consistent with recent ALMA observations of
galaxies at in the \emph{Hubble} \emph{Ultra} \emph{Deep} \emph{Field}
(HUDF), as well as empirical relations predicted by a
Calzetti-like law. Our results, combined with other literature data, suggest
that the relation does not evolve over the redshift range
, at least for galaxies with log.
Finally, we present tentative evidence which suggests that the attenuation
curve may become steeper at log.Comment: 16 pages, 12 figures, accepted for publication in MNRA
The connection between stellar mass, age and quenching timescale in massive quiescent galaxies at
We present a spectro-photometric study of a mass-complete sample of quiescent
galaxies at with
drawn from the
VANDELS survey, exploring the relationship between stellar mass, age and
star-formation history. Within our sample of 114 galaxies, we derive a
stellar-mass vs stellar-age relation with a slope of Gyr
per decade in stellar mass. When combined with recent literature results, we
find evidence that the slope of this relation remains consistent over the
redshift interval . The galaxies within the VANDELS quiescent display a
wide range of star-formation histories, with a mean star-formation timescale of
Gyr and a mean quenching timescale of Gyr. We also
find a large scatter in the quenching timescales of the VANDELS quiescent
galaxies, in agreement with previous evidence that galaxies at cease
star formation via multiple mechanisms. We then focus on the oldest galaxies in
our sample, finding that the number density of galaxies that quenched before with stellar masses is . Although
uncertain, this estimate is in good agreement with the latest observational
results at , tentatively suggesting that neither rejuvenation nor merger
events are playing a major role in the evolution of the oldest massive
quiescent galaxies within the redshift interval .Comment: Accepted for publication in MNRAS, 11 pages, 6 figure
The galaxy UV luminosity function at z≃11 from a suite of public JWST ERS, ERO and Cycle-1 programs
The VANDELS survey: A strong correlation between Ly equivalent width and stellar metallicity at
We present the results of a new study investigating the relationship between
observed Ly equivalent width ((Ly)) and the
metallicity of the ionizing stellar population () for a sample of
star-forming galaxies at drawn from the VANDELS survey.
Dividing our sample into quartiles of rest-frame (Ly)
across the range -58 \unicode{xC5} \lesssim (Ly)
\lesssim 110 \unicode{xC5} we determine from full spectral
fitting of composite far-ultraviolet (FUV) spectra and find a clear
anti-correlation between (Ly) and . Our results
indicate that decreases by a factor between the lowest
(Ly) quartile
((Ly)\rangle=-18\unicode{xC5}) and the highest
(Ly) quartile
((Ly)\rangle=24\unicode{xC5}). Similarly,
galaxies typically defined as Lyman Alpha Emitters (LAEs;
(Ly) >20\unicode{xC5}) are, on average, metal poor with
respect to the non-LAE galaxy population ((Ly)
\leq20\unicode{xC5}) with
. Finally, based on the best-fitting stellar models, we
estimate that the increasing strength of the stellar ionizing spectrum towards
lower is responsible for of the observed variation
in (Ly) across our sample, with the remaining contribution
() being due to a decrease in the HI/dust covering fractions in
low galaxies.Comment: 10 pages, 6 figures, MNRAS accepte
The ultraviolet continuum slopes (β) of galaxies at z ≃ 8 − 16 from JWST and ground-based near-infrared imaging
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