15,455 research outputs found
The star formation history of damped Lyman alpha absorbers
The local power law relationship between the surface densities of neutral
hydrogen gas and star formation rate (SFR) can be used to explore the SFR
properties of damped Lyman alpha (DLA) systems at higher redshift. We find that
while the SFR densities for DLA systems are consistent with luminous star
forming galaxies at redshifts below z~0.6, at higher redshifts their SFR
density is too low for them to provide a significant contribution to the cosmic
star formation history (SFH). This suggests that the majority of DLAs may be a
distinct population from the Lyman break galaxies (LBGs) or submillimeter
star-forming galaxies that together dominate the SFR density at high redshift.
It is also possible that the DLAs do not trace the bulk of the neutral gas at
high redshift. The metallicity properties of DLAs are consistent with this
interpretation. The DLAs show a metal mass density lower by two orders of
magnitude at all redshifts than that inferred from the SFH of the universe.
These results are consistent with DLAs being dominated by low mass systems
having low SFRs or a late onset of star formation, similar to the star
formation histories of dwarf galaxies in the local universe.Comment: 9 pages, 5 figures, accepted for publication in Ap
A Strong-Lens Survey in AEGIS: the influence of large scale structure
We report on the results of a visual search for galaxy-scale strong
gravitational lenses over 650 arcmin^2 of HST/ACS imaging in the DEEP2-EGS
field. In addition to a previously-known Einstein Cross (the "Cross," HST
J141735+52264, with z_lens=0.8106 and a published z_source=3.40), we identify
two new strong galaxy-galaxy lenses with multiple extended arcs. The first, HST
J141820+52361 (the ``Dewdrop''; z_lens=0.5798, lenses two distinct extended
sources into two pairs of arcs z_source=0.while), 9818 the second, HST
J141833+52435 (the ``Anchor''; z_lens=0.4625), produces a single pair of arcs
(source redshift not yet known). All three definite lenses are fit well by
simple singular isothermal ellipsoid models including external shear. Using the
three-dimensional line-of-sight (LOS) information on galaxies from the DEEP2
data, we calculate the convergence and shear contributions, assuming singular
isothermal sphere halos truncated at 200 h^-1 kpc. These are also compared
against three-dimensional local-density estimates. We find that even strong
lenses in demonstrably underdense local environments may be considerably
affected by LOS contributions, which in turn, may be underestimates of the
effect of large scale structure.Comment: ApJ Letters, submitted. Part of the AEGIS ApJL Special Issue. 4
Figures, 1 Table. For a version with full-resolution figures, please see
http://www.slac.stanford.edu/~pjm/HAGGLeS/astroph/legs.pd
Abelian BF theory and Turaev-Viro invariant
The U(1) BF Quantum Field Theory is revisited in the light of
Deligne-Beilinson Cohomology. We show how the U(1) Chern-Simons partition
function is related to the BF one and how the latter on its turn coincides with
an abelian Turaev-Viro invariant. Significant differences compared to the
non-abelian case are highlighted.Comment: 47 pages and 6 figure
Inelastic Collapse of Three Particles
A system of three particles undergoing inelastic collisions in arbitrary
spatial dimensions is studied with the aim of establishing the domain of
``inelastic collapse''---an infinite number of collisions which take place in a
finite time. Analytic and simulation results show that for a sufficiently small
restitution coefficient, , collapse can
occur. In one dimension, such a collapse is stable against small perturbations
within this entire range. In higher dimensions, the collapse can be stable
against small variations of initial conditions, within a smaller range,
.Comment: 6 pages, figures on request, accepted by PR
A Cosmological Framework for the Co-Evolution of Quasars, Supermassive Black Holes, and Elliptical Galaxies: II. Formation of Red Ellipticals
(Abridged) We develop and test a model for the cosmological role of mergers
in the formation and quenching of red, early-type galaxies. Making the ansatz
that star formation is quenched after a gas-rich, spheroid-forming major
merger, we demonstrate that this naturally predicts the turnover in the
efficiency of star formation at ~L_star, as well as the observed mass
functions/density of red galaxies as a function of redshift, the formation
times of spheroids as a function of mass, and the fraction of quenched galaxies
as a function of galaxy and halo mass, environment, and redshift. Comparing to
a variety of semi-analytic models in which quenching is primarily driven by
halo mass considerations or secular/disk instabilities, we demonstrate that our
model and different broad classes of models make unique and robust qualitative
predictions for a number of observables, including the red fraction as a
function of galaxy and halo mass, the density of passive galaxies and evolution
of the color-morphology-density relations at high z, and the fraction of
disky/boxy spheroids as a function of mass. In each case, the observations
favor a model in which galaxies quench after a major merger builds a massive
spheroid, and disfavor quenching via secular or pure halo processes. We discuss
a variety of physical possibilities for this quenching, and propose a mixed
scenario in which traditional quenching in hot, massive halos is supplemented
by the feedback associated with star formation and quasar activity in a major
merger, which temporarily suppress cooling and establish the conditions of a
dynamically hot halo in the central regions of the host, even in low mass
halos.Comment: 29 pages, 21 figures, submitted to ApJ. Replacement fixes comparison
of models in Figures 6 &
Cluster Alignments and Ellipticities in LCDM Cosmology
The ellipticities and alignments of clusters of galaxies, and their evolution
with redshift, are examined in the context of a Lambda-dominated cold dark
matter cosmology. We use a large-scale, high-resolution N-body simulation to
model the matter distribution in a light cone containing ~10^6 clusters out to
redshifts of z=3. Cluster ellipticities are determined as a function of mass,
radius, and redshift, both in 3D and in projection. We find strong cluster
ellipticities: the mean ellipticity increases with redshift from 0.3 at z=0 to
0.5 at z=3, for both 3D and 2D ellipticities; the evolution is well-fit by
e=0.33+0.05z. The ellipticities increase with cluster mass and with cluster
radius; the main cluster body is more elliptical than the cluster cores, but
the increase of ellipticities with redshift is preserved. Using the fitted
cluster ellipsoids, we determine the alignment of clusters as a function of
their separation. We find strong alignment of clusters for separations <100
Mpc/h; the alignment increases with decreasing separation and with increasing
redshift. The evolution of clusters from highly aligned and elongated systems
at early times to lower alignment and elongation at present reflects the
hierarchical and filamentary nature of structure formation. These measures of
cluster ellipticity and alignment will provide a new test of the current
cosmological model when compared with upcoming cluster surveys.Comment: 29 pages including 13 figures, to appear in ApJ Jan. 2005 (corrected
typos, added reference
Dependence of copolymer sequencing based on lactone ring size and ε-substitution
The copolymerization of an ε-substituted ε-lactone, menthide (MI), and a range of nonsubstituted lactones (6-, 7-, 8-, and 9-membered rings) was investigated in order to determine the factors that affect the sequencing of the MI copolymers. Analysis by quantitative 13C NMR spectroscopy showed the copolymerization of MI with a nonsubstituted lactone of ring size 7 or less produced a randomly sequenced copolymer, as a consequence of the smaller lactone polymerizing first and undergoing rapid transesterification as MI was incorporated. Conversely, copolymerization with larger ring lactones (ring size 8 and above) produced block-like copolymers as a consequence of MI polymerizing initially, which does not undergo rapid transesterification side reactions during the incorporation of the second monomer. Terpolymerizations of a small ring lactone, macrolactone, and menthide demonstrated methods of producing lactone terpolymers with different final sequences, depending on when the small ring lactone was injected into the reaction mixture
The origin of ultra diffuse galaxies: stellar feedback and quenching
We test if the cosmological zoom-in simulations of isolated galaxies from the
FIRE project reproduce the properties of ultra diffuse galaxies. We show that
stellar feedback-generated outflows that dynamically heat galactic stars,
together with a passively aging stellar population after imposed quenching
(from e.g. infall into a galaxy cluster), naturally reproduce the observed
population of red UDGs, without the need for high spin halos or dynamical
influence from their host cluster. We reproduce the range of surface
brightness, radius and absolute magnitude of the observed z=0 red UDGs by
quenching simulated galaxies at a range of different times. They represent a
mostly uniform population of dark matter-dominated galaxies with M_star ~1e8
Msun, low metallicity and a broad range of ages. The most massive simulated
UDGs require earliest quenching and are therefore the oldest. Our simulations
provide a good match to the central enclosed masses and the velocity
dispersions of the observed UDGs (20-50 km/s). The enclosed masses of the
simulated UDGs remain largely fixed across a broad range of quenching times
because the central regions of their dark matter halos complete their growth
early. A typical UDG forms in a dwarf halo mass range of Mh~4e10-1e11 Msun. The
most massive red UDG in our sample requires quenching at z~3 when its halo
reached Mh ~ 1e11 Msun. If it, instead, continues growing in the field, by z=0
its halo mass reaches > 5e11 Msun, comparable to the halo of an L* galaxy. If
our simulated dwarfs are not quenched, they evolve into bluer low-surface
brightness galaxies with mass-to-light ratios similar to observed field dwarfs.
While our simulation sample covers a limited range of formation histories and
halo masses, we predict that UDG is a common, and perhaps even dominant, galaxy
type around Ms~1e8 Msun, both in the field and in clusters.Comment: 20 pages, 13 figures; match the MNRAS accepted versio
Native vegetation in Western Australia : extent, type and status
This report describes a new vegetation extent and type dataset for Western Australia prepared through the National Land and Water Resources Audit. Summary tables and maps prepared from these data are presented describing vegetation in relation to natural resource boundaries commonly used for environmental reporting. This present vegetation extent dataset builds on previous vegetation mapping exercises in Western Australia
The Phoenix Deep Survey: The 1.4 GHz microJansky catalogue
The initial Phoenix Deep Survey (PDS) observations with the Australia
Telescope Compact Array have been supplemented by additional 1.4 GHz
observations over the past few years. Here we present details of the
construction of a new mosaic image covering an area of 4.56 square degrees, an
investigation of the reliability of the source measurements, and the 1.4 GHz
source counts for the compiled radio catalogue. The mosaic achieves a 1-sigma
rms noise of 12 microJy at its most sensitive, and a homogeneous radio-selected
catalogue of over 2000 sources reaching flux densities as faint as 60 microJy
has been compiled. The source parameter measurements are found to be consistent
with the expected uncertainties from the image noise levels and the Gaussian
source fitting procedure. A radio-selected sample avoids the complications of
obscuration associated with optically-selected samples, and by utilising
complementary PDS observations including multicolour optical, near-infrared and
spectroscopic data, this radio catalogue will be used in a detailed
investigation of the evolution in star-formation spanning the redshift range 0
< z < 1. The homogeneity of the catalogue ensures a consistent picture of
galaxy evolution can be developed over the full cosmologically significant
redshift range of interest. The 1.4 GHz mosaic image and the source catalogue
are available on the web at http://www.atnf.csiro.au/~ahopkins/phoenix/ or from
the authors by request.Comment: 16 pages, 11 figures, 4 tables. Accepted for publication by A
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