Formation of bright central galaxies in massive haloes

Galaxy formation is one of the most active and evolving fields of research in observational astronomy and cosmology. While we know today which physical processes qualitatively regulate galaxy evolution, the precise timing and the behaviour of these processes and their relations to host environments remain unclear. Many interesting questions are still debated: What regulates galaxy evolution? When do massive galaxies assemble their stellar mass and how? Where does this mass assembly occur? This thesis studies the formation and evolution of central galaxies in groups and clusters over the last 9 billion years in an attempt to answer these questions. Two important properties of galaxy clusters and groups make them ideal systems to study cosmic evolution. First, they are the largest structures in the Universe that have undergone gravitational relaxation and virial equilibrium. By comparing mass distributions among the nearby- and early-Universe clusters, we can measure the rate of the structure growth and formation. Second, the gravitational potential wells of clusters are deep enough that they retain all of the cluster material, despite outflows driven by supernovae (SNe) and active galactic nuclei (AGN). Thus, the cluster baryons can provide key information on the essential mechanisms related to galaxy formation, including star formation efficiency and the impact of AGN and SNe feedback on galaxy evolution. This thesis reports the identification of a large sample of galaxy groups including their optical and X-ray properties. It includes several refereed journal articles, of which five have been included here. In the first article (Gozaliasl et al. 2014a), we study the distribution and the development of the magnitude gap between the brightest group galaxies and their brightest satellites in our well defined mass-selected sample of 129 X-ray galaxy groups at 0.04 < z < 1.23 in XMM-LSS. We investigate the relation between magnitude gap and absolute r-band magnitude of the central group galaxy and its brightest satellite. Our observational results are compared to the predictions by three semi-analytic models (SAMs) based on the Millennium simulation. We show that the fraction of galaxy groups with large magnitude gaps (e.g. fossils) increases significantly with decreasing redshift by a factor of ∼ 2. In contrast to the model predictions, we show that the intercept of the relation between the absolute magnitude of the brightest groups galaxies (BGGs) and the magnitude gap becomes brighter as a function of increasing redshift. We attribute this evolution to the presence of a younger population of the observed BGGs. In the second article (Gozaliasl et al. 2016), we study the distribution and evolution of the star formation rate (SFR) and the stellar mass of BGGs over the last 9 billion years, using a sample of 407 BGGs selected from X-ray galaxy groups at 0.04 < z < 1.3 in the XMM-LSS, COSMOS, and AEGIS fields. We find that the mean stellar mass of BGGs grows by a factor of 2 from z = 1.3 to present day and the stellar mass distribution evolves towards a normal distribution with cosmic time. We find that the BGGs are not completely inactive systems as the SFR of a considerable number of BGG ranges from 1 to 1000 M_sun/yr. In the third article (Gozaliasl et al. 2014b), we study the evolution of halo mass, magnitude gap, and composite (stacked) luminosity function of galaxies in groups classified by the magnitude gap (as fossils, normal/non-fossils, and random groups) using the Guo et al. (2011) SAM. We find that galaxy groups with large magnitude gaps, i.e. fossils (∆M1,2 ≥ 2 mag), form earlier than the non-fossil systems. We measure the evolution of the Schechter function parameters, finding that M∗ for fossils grows by at least +1 mag in contrast to non-fossils, decreasing the number of massive galaxies with redshift. The faint-end slope (α) of both fossils and non-fossils remains constant with redshift. However, φ∗ grows significantly for both type of groups, changing the number of galaxies with cosmic time. We find that the number of dwarf galaxies in fossils shows no significant evolution in comparison to non-fossils and conclude that the changes in the number of galaxies (φ∗) of fossils are mainly due to the changes in the number of massive (M∗) galaxies. Overall, these results indicate that the giant central galaxies in fossils form by multiple mergers of the massive galaxies. In the fourth article (Khosroshahi et al. 2014), we analyse the observed X-ray, optical, and spectroscopic data of four optically selected fossil groups at z ∼ 0.06 in 2dFGRS to examine the possibility that a galaxy group, which hosts a giant luminous elliptical galaxy with a large magnitude gap, can be associated with diffuse X-ray radiation, similar to that of fossil groups. The X-ray and optical properties of these groups indicate the presence of extended X-ray emission from the hot intra-group gas. We find that one of them is a fossil group, and the X-ray luminosity of two groups is close to the defined threshold for fossil groups. One of the groups is ruled out due to the optical contamination in the input sample. In the fifth paper (Khosroshahi et al. 2015), we analyse data from the multiwavelength observations of galaxy groups to probe statistical predictions from the SAMs. We show that magnitude gap can be used as an observable parameter to study groups and to probe galaxy formation models

Revisiting mass-radius relationships for exoplanet populations: a machine learning insight

The growing number of exoplanet discoveries and advances in machine learning techniques have opened new avenues for exploring and understanding the characteristics of worlds beyond our Solar System. In this study, we employ efficient machine learning approaches to analyze a dataset comprising 762 confirmed exoplanets and eight Solar System planets, aiming to characterize their fundamental quantities. By applying different unsupervised clustering algorithms, we classify the data into two main classes: 'small' and 'giant' planets, with cut-off values at $R_{p}=8.13R_{\oplus}$ and $M_{p}=52.48M_{\oplus}$. This classification reveals an intriguing distinction: giant planets have lower densities, suggesting higher H-He mass fractions, while small planets are denser, composed mainly of heavier elements. We apply various regression models to uncover correlations between physical parameters and their predictive power for exoplanet radius. Our analysis highlights that planetary mass, orbital period, and stellar mass play crucial roles in predicting exoplanet radius. Among the models evaluated, the Support Vector Regression consistently outperforms others, demonstrating its promise for obtaining accurate planetary radius estimates. Furthermore, we derive parametric equations using the M5P and Markov Chain Monte Carlo methods. Notably, our study reveals a noteworthy result: small planets exhibit a positive linear mass-radius relation, aligning with previous findings. Conversely, for giant planets, we observe a strong correlation between planetary radius and the mass of their host stars, which might provide intriguing insights into the relationship between giant planet formation and stellar characteristics.Comment: Accepted for publication in MNRAS. 17 pages, 18 figure

Chandra centres for COSMOS X-ray galaxy groups: differences in stellar properties between central dominant and offset brightest group galaxies

We present the results of a search for galaxy clusters and groups in the ∼2 deg^2 of the COSMOS field using all available X-ray observations from the XMM–Newton and Chandra observatories. We reach an X-ray flux limit of 3×10^(−16) erg cm^(−2)s^(−1) in the 0.5–2 keV range, and identify 247 X-ray groups with M_(200c) = 8×10^(12) -3×10^(14)M⊙ at a redshift range of 0.08 ≤ z < 1.53, using the multiband photometric redshift and the master spectroscopic redshift catalogues of the COSMOS. The X-ray centres of groups are determined using high-resolution Chandra imaging. We investigate the relations between the offset of the brightest group galaxies (BGGs) from halo X-ray centre and group properties and compare with predictions from semi-analytic models and hydrodynamical simulations. We find that BGG offset decreases with both increasing halo mass and decreasing redshift with no strong dependence on the X-ray flux and SNR. We show that the BGG offset decreases as a function of increasing magnitude gap with no considerable redshift-dependent trend. The stellar mass of BGGs in observations extends over a wider dynamic range compared to model predictions. At z < 0.5, the central dominant BGGs become more massive than those with large offsets by up to 0.3 dex, in agreement with model prediction. The observed and predicted log-normal scatter in the stellar mass of both low- and large-offset BGGs at fixed halo mass is ∼0.3 dex

Chandra centres for COSMOS X-ray galaxy groups: differences in stellar properties between central dominant and offset brightest group galaxies

We present the results of a search for galaxy clusters and groups in the ∼2 deg^2 of the COSMOS field using all available X-ray observations from the XMM–Newton and Chandra observatories. We reach an X-ray flux limit of 3×10^(−16) erg cm^(−2)s^(−1) in the 0.5–2 keV range, and identify 247 X-ray groups with M_(200c) = 8×10^(12) -3×10^(14)M⊙ at a redshift range of 0.08 ≤ z < 1.53, using the multiband photometric redshift and the master spectroscopic redshift catalogues of the COSMOS. The X-ray centres of groups are determined using high-resolution Chandra imaging. We investigate the relations between the offset of the brightest group galaxies (BGGs) from halo X-ray centre and group properties and compare with predictions from semi-analytic models and hydrodynamical simulations. We find that BGG offset decreases with both increasing halo mass and decreasing redshift with no strong dependence on the X-ray flux and SNR. We show that the BGG offset decreases as a function of increasing magnitude gap with no considerable redshift-dependent trend. The stellar mass of BGGs in observations extends over a wider dynamic range compared to model predictions. At z < 0.5, the central dominant BGGs become more massive than those with large offsets by up to 0.3 dex, in agreement with model prediction. The observed and predicted log-normal scatter in the stellar mass of both low- and large-offset BGGs at fixed halo mass is ∼0.3 dex

Optically selected fossil groups; X-ray observations and galaxy properties

We report on the X-ray and optical observations of galaxy groups selected from the 2dfGRS group catalog, to explore the possibility that galaxy groups hosting a giant elliptical galaxy and a large optical luminosity gap present between the two brightest group galaxies, can be associated with an extended X-ray emission, similar to that observed in fossil galaxy groups. The X-ray observations of 4 galaxy groups were carried out with Chandra telescope with 10-20 ksec exposure time. Combining the X-ray and the optical observations we find evidences for the presence of a diffuse extended X-ray emission beyond the optical size of the brightest group galaxy. Taking both the X-ray and the optical criteria, one of the groups is identified as a fossil group and one is ruled out because of the contamination in the earlier optical selection. For the two remaining systems, the X-ay luminosity threshold is close to the convention know for fossil groups. In all cases the X-ray luminosity is below the expected value from the X-ray selected fossils for a given optical luminosity of the group. A rough estimation for the comoving number density of fossil groups is obtained and found to be in broad agreement with the estimations from observations of X-ray selected fossils and predictions of cosmological simulations.Comment: Accepted for publication in MNRA

Brightest Group Galaxies : Stellar Mass and Star Formation Rate (paper I)

We study the distribution and evolution of the stellar mass and the star formation rate (SFR) of the brightest group galaxies (BGGs) over 0.04 <z <1.3 using a large sample of 407 X-ray galaxy groups selected from the COSMOS, AEGIS, and XMM-LSS fields. We compare our results with predictions from the semi-analytic models based on the Millennium simulation. In contrast to model predictions, we find that, as the Universe evolves, the stellarmass distribution evolves towards a normal distribution. This distribution tends to skew to low-mass BGGs at all redshifts implying the presence of a star-forming population of the BGGs with M-S similar to 10(10.5) M-circle dot which results in the shape of the stellar mass distribution deviating from a normal distribution. In agreement with the models and previous studies, we find that the mean stellar mass of BGGs grows with time by a factor of similar to 2 between z = 1.3 and z = 0.1, however, the significant growth occurs above z = 0.4. The BGGs are not entirely a dormant population of galaxies, as low-mass BGGs in low-mass haloes are more active in forming stars than the BGGs in more massive haloes, over the same redshift range. We find that the average SFR of the BGGs evolves steeply with redshift and fraction of the passive BGGs increases as a function of increasing stellar mass and halo mass. Finally, we show that the specific SFR of the BGGs within haloes with M-200Peer reviewe

On the Reliability of Photometric and Spectroscopic Tracers of Halo Relaxation

We characterize the relaxation state of galaxy systems by providing an assessment of the reliability of the photometric and spectroscopic probe via the semianalytic galaxy evolution model. We quantify the correlations between the dynamical age of simuglated galaxy groups and popular proxies of halo relaxation in observation, which are mainly either spectroscopic or photometric. We find the photometric indicators demonstrate a stronger correlation with the dynamical relaxation of galaxy groups compared to the spectroscopic probes. We take advantage of the Anderson Darling statistic (A(2)) and the velocity segregation (Delta V) as our spectroscopic indicators, and use the luminosity gap (Delta m(12)) and the luminosity decentering (D-offset) as photometric ones. First, we find that a combination of Delta m(12) and D-offset evaluated by a bivariant relation (B = 0.04 x Delta m(12) - 0.11 x Log(Doff-set) + 0.28) shows a good correlation with the dynamical age compared to all other indicators. Second, by using the observational X-ray surface brightness map, we show that the bivariant relation brings about some acceptable correlations with X-ray proxies. These correlations are as well as the correlations between A(2) and X-ray proxies, offering a reliable yet fast and economical method of quantifying the relaxation of galaxy systems. This study demonstrates that using photometric data to determine the relaxation status of a group will lead to some promising results that are comparable with the more expensive spectroscopic counterpart.Peer reviewe

Bent It Like FRs: Extended Radio AGN in the COSMOS Field and Their Large-Scale Environment

A fascinating topic in radio astronomy is how to associate the complexity of observed radio structures with their environment in order to understand their interplay and the reason for the plethora of radio structures found in surveys. In this project, we explore the distortion of the radio structure of Fanaroff–Riley (FR)-type radio sources in the VLA-COSMOS Large Project at 3 GHz and relate it to their large-scale environment. We quantify the distortion by using the angle formed between the jets/lobes of two-sided FRs, namely bent angle (BA). Our sample includes 108 objects in the redshift range 0.0

Bent It Like FRs: Extended Radio AGN in the COSMOS Field and Their Large-Scale Environment

A fascinating topic in radio astronomy is how to associate the complexity of observed radio structures with their environment in order to understand their interplay and the reason for the plethora of radio structures found in surveys. In this project, we explore the distortion of the radio structure of Fanaroff–Riley (FR)-type radio sources in the VLA-COSMOS Large Project at 3 GHz and relate it to their large-scale environment. We quantify the distortion by using the angle formed between the jets/lobes of two-sided FRs, namely bent angle (BA). Our sample includes 108 objects in the redshift range 0.0