Parametric Strong Gravitational Lensing Analysis of Abell 1689

(Abridged) We measure the mass distribution of galaxy cluster Abell 1689 within 0.3 Mpc/h_70 of the cluster centre using its strong lensing effect on 32 background galaxies. The multiple images are based on those of Broadhurst et al. 2005 with some modifications. The cluster profile is explored further out to ~2.5 Mpc/h_70 with weak lensing shear measurements from Broadhurst et al. 2005b. The masses of ~200 cluster galaxies are measured with Fundamental Plane in order to accurately model the small scale mass structure in the cluster. The galaxies are modelled as elliptical truncated isothermal spheres. The dark matter component of the cluster is described by either non-singular isothermal ellipsoids (NSIE) or elliptical versions of the universal dark matter profile (ENFW). We use two dark matter haloes to model the smooth DM in the cluster. The total mass profile is well described by either an NSIS profile with sigma=1514+-18 km/s and core radius of r_c=71+-5kpc/h_70, or an NFW profile with C=6.0+-0.5 and r_200=2.82+-0.11 Mpc/h_70. The errors are assumed to be due to the error in assigning masses to the individual galaxies in the galaxy component. The derived total mass is in good agreement with the mass profile of Broadhurst et al. 05. Using also weak lensing we can constrain the profile further out to r~2.5 Mpc/h_70. The best fit parameters are then sigma=1499+-15 km/s and r_c=66+-5 kpc/h_70 for the NSIS profile and C=7.6+-0.5 and r_200=2.55+-0.07 Mpc/h_70 for the NFW profile. Using the same image configuration as Broadhurst et al. 2005 we obtain a strong lensing model that is superior to that of Broadhurst et al. 2005 (rms of 2.7'' compared to 3.2'').Comment: 43 pages, 22 figures, submitted to the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society after the first referee report. Full resolution paper available from http://www.usm.uni-muenchen.de/~halkola/A1689

A deep i-selected multi-waveband galaxy catalogue in the COSMOS field

In this paper we present a deep and homogeneous i-band selected multi-waveband catalogue in the COSMOS field covering an area of about 0.7 square-degree. Our catalogue with a formal 50 percent completeness limit for point sources of i~26.7 comprises about 290.000 galaxies with information in 8 passbands. We combine publicly available u, B, V, r, i, z, and K data with proprietary imaging in H band. We discuss in detail the observations, the data reduction, and the photometric properties of the H-band data. We estimate photometric redshifts for all the galaxies in the catalogue. A comparison with 162 spectroscopic redshifts in the redshift range 0 < z < 3 shows that the achieved accuracy of the photometric redshifts is (Delta_z / (z_spec+1)) ~0.035 with only ~2 percent outliers. We derive absolute UV magnitudes and investigate the evolution of the luminosity function evaluated in the rest-frame UV at 1500 Angstrom. There is a good agreement between the LFs derived here and the LFs derived in the FORS Deep Field. We see a similar brightening of M_star and a decrease of phi_star with redshift. The catalogue including the photometric redshift information is made publicly available.Comment: 20 pages, 17 figures, accepted for publication in MNRAS; high resulution paper: http://www.mpe.mpg.de/~gabasch/COSMOS/cosmos.pd

The Galactic Halo density distribution from photometric survey data: results of a pilot study

Our goal is to recover the Galactic Halo spatial density by means of field stars. To this aim, we apply a new technique to the Capodimonte Deep Field (OACDF, Alcala' et al. 2004), as a pilot study in view of the VLT Survey Telescope (VST) stellar projects. Considering the unique chance to collect deep and wide-field photometry with the VST, our method may represent a useful tool towards a definitive mapping of the Galactic Halo. In the framework of synthetic stellar populations, turn-off stars are used to reconstruct the spatial density. The determination of the space density is achieved by comparing the data with synthetic color-magnitude diagrams (CMDs). The only assumptions involve the IMF, age and metallicity of the synthetic halo population. Stars are randomly placed in the solid angle. The contributions of the various Monte Carlo distributions (with a step of 4 kpc) along the line of sight are simultaneously varied to reproduce the observed CMD. Our result on the space density is consistent with a power-law exponent n~3 over a range of Galactocentric distances from 8 to 40 kpc.Comment: 5 pages. Accepted for publication in Astronomy and Astrophysic

Insights on star formation histories and physical properties of 1.2≤z≲41.2 \leq z \lesssim 4 Herschel-detected galaxies

We test the impact of using variable star forming histories (SFHs) and the use of the IR luminosity (LIR) as a constrain on the physical parameters of high redshift dusty star-forming galaxies. We explore in particular the stellar properties of galaxies in relation with their location on the SFR-M* diagram. We perform SED fitting of the UV-NIR and FIR emissions of a large sample of GOODS-Herschel galaxies, for which rich multi-wavelength observations are available. We test different SFHs and imposing energy conservation in the SED fitting process, to face issues like the age-extinction degeneracy and produce SEDs consistent with observations. Our models work well for the majority of the sample, with the notable exception of the high LIR end, for which we have indications that our simple energy conservation approach cannot hold true. We find trends in the SFHs fitting our sources depending on stellar mass M* and z. Trends also emerge in the characteristic timescales of the SED models depending on the location on the SFR-M* diagram. We show that whilst using the same available observational data, we can produce galaxies less star-forming than usually inferred, if we allow declining SFHs, while properly reproducing their observables. These sources can be post-starbursts undergoing quenching, and their SFRs are potentially overestimated if inferred from their LIR. Fitting without the IR constrain leads to a strong preference for declining SFHs, while its inclusion increases the preference of rising SFHs, more so at high z, in tentative agreement with the cosmic star formation history. Keeping in mind that the sample is biased towards high LIR, the evolution shaped by our model appears as both bursty (initially) and steady-lasting (later on). The global SFH of the sample follows the cosmic SFH with a small scatter, and is compatible with the "downsizing" scenario of galaxy evolution.Comment: 28 pages, 26 figures, one appendix, Accepted for publication in Astronomy & Astrophysic

The sizes of galaxy halos in galaxy cluster Abell 1689

The multiple images observed in galaxy cluster Abell 1689 provide strong constraints not only on the mass distribution of the cluster but also on the ensemble properties of the cluster galaxies. Using parametric strong lensing models for the cluster, and by assuming well motivated scaling laws between the truncation radius s and the velocity dispersion sigma of a cluster galaxy we are able to derive sizes of the dark matter halos of cluster galaxies. For the scaling law expected for galaxies in the cluster environment (s propto sigma), we obtain s = 64^{+15}_{-14} (sigma / 220 km/s) kpc. For the scaling law used for galaxies in the field with s propto sigma^2 we find s = 66^{+18}_{-16} (sigma / 220 km/s)^2 kpc. Compared to halos of field galaxies, the cluster galaxy halos in Abell 1689 are strongly truncated.Comment: 12 pages, 4 figures. Accepted for publication in the Ap

The stellar mass function of galaxies to z ~ 5 in the Fors Deep and GOODS-S fields

We present a measurement of the evolution of the stellar mass function (MF) of galaxies and the evolution of the total stellar mass density at 0<z<5. We use deep multicolor data in the Fors Deep Field (FDF; I-selected reaching I_AB=26.8) and the GOODS-S/CDFS region (K-selected reaching K_AB=25.4) to estimate stellar masses based on fits to composite stellar population models for 5557 and 3367 sources, respectively. The MF of objects from the GOODS-S sample is very similar to that of the FDF. Near-IR selected surveys hence detect the more massive objects of the same principal population as do I-selected surveys. We find that the most massive galaxies harbor the oldest stellar populations at all redshifts. At low z, our MF follows the local MF very well, extending the local MF down to 10^8 Msun. The faint end slope is consistent with the local value of alpha~1.1 at least up to z~1.5. Our MF also agrees very well with the MUNICS and K20 results at z<2. The MF seems to evolve in a regular way at least up to z~2 with the normalization decreasing by 50% to z=1 and by 70% to z=2. Objects having M>10^10 Msun which are the likely progenitors of todays L* galaxies are found in much smaller numbers above z=2. However, we note that massive galaxies with M>10^11 Msun are present even to the largest redshift we probe. Beyond z=2 the evolution of the mass function becomes more rapid. We find that the total stellar mass density at z=1 is 50% of the local value. At z=2, 25% of the local mass density is assembled, and at z=3 and z=5 we find that at least 15% and 5% of the mass in stars is in place, respectively. The number density of galaxies with M>10^11 Msun evolves very similarly to the evolution at lower masses. It decreases by 0.4 dex to z=1, by 0.6 dex to z=2, and by 1 dex to z=4.Comment: Accepted for publication in ApJ

Modeling the connection between ultraviolet and infrared galaxy populations across cosmic times

Using a phenomenological approach, we self-consistently model the redshift evolution of the ultraviolet (UV) and infrared (IR) luminosity functions across cosmic time, as well as a range of observed IR properties of UV-selected galaxy population. This model is an extension of the 2SFM (2 star-formation modes) formalism, which is based on the observed "main-sequence" of star-forming galaxies, i.e. a strong correlation between their stellar mass and their star formation rate (SFR), and a secondary population of starbursts with an excess of star formation. The balance between the UV light from young, massive stars and the dust-reprocessed IR emission is modeled following the empirical relation between the attenuation (IRX for IR excess hereafter) and the stellar mass, assuming a scatter of 0.4\,dex around this relation. We obtain a good overall agreement with the measurements of the IR luminosity function up to z~3 and the UV luminosity functions up to z~6, and show that a scatter on the IRX-M relation is mandatory to reproduce these observables. We also naturally reproduce the observed, flat relation between the mean IRX and the UV luminosity at LUV>109.5 L⊙. Finally, we perform predictions of the UV properties and detectability of IR-selected samples and the vice versa, and discuss the results in the context of the UV-rest-frame and sub-millimeter surveys of the next decade

The supermassive black hole in NGC4486a detected with SINFONI at the VLT

The near-infrared integral field spectrograph SINFONI at the ESO VLT opens a new window for the study of central supermassive black holes. With a near-IR spatial resolution similar to HST optical and the ability to penetrate dust it provides the possibility to explore the low-mass end of the M-sigma relation (sigma<120km/s) where so far very few black hole masses were measured with stellar dynamics. With SINFONI we observed the central region of the low-luminosity elliptical galaxy NGC4486a at a spatial resolution of ~0.1arcsec in the K band. The stellar kinematics was measured with a maximum penalised likelihood method considering the region around the CO absorption band heads. We determined a black hole mass of M_BH=1.25^{+0.75}_{-0.79} x 10^7 M_sun (90% C.L.) using the Schwarzschild orbit superposition method including the full 2-dimensional spatial information. This mass agrees with the predictions of the M-sigma relation, strengthening its validity at the lower sigma end.Comment: 7 pages, 7 figures. Accepted by MNRA

Observational evidence of a slow downfall of star formation efficiency in massive galaxies during the last 10 Gyr

In this paper we study the causes of the reported mass-dependence of the slope of SFR-M* relation, the so-called "Main Sequence" of star-forming galaxies, and discuss its implication on the physical processes that shaped the star formation history of massive galaxies over cosmic time. We use the CANDELS near-IR imaging from the Hubble Space Telescope to perform the bulge-to-disk decomposition of distant galaxies and measure for the first time the slope of the SFR-Mdisk relation at z=1. We find that this relation follows very closely the shape of the SFR-M* correlation, still with a pronounced flattening at the high-mass end. This is clearly excluding, at least at z=1, the secular growth of quiescent bulges in star-forming galaxies as the main driver for the change of slope of the Main Sequence. Then, by stacking the Herschel data available in the CANDELS field, we estimate the total gas mass and the star formation efficiency at different positions on the SFR-M* relation. We find that the relatively low SFRs observed in massive galaxies (M* > 5e10 Msun) are caused by a decreased star formation efficiency, by up to a factor of 3 as compared to lower stellar mass galaxies, and not by a reduced gas content. The trend at the lowest masses is likely linked to the dominance of atomic over molecular gas. We argue that this stellar-mass-dependent SFE can explain the varying slope of the Main Sequence since z=1.5, hence over 70% of the Hubble time. The drop of SFE occurs at lower masses in the local Universe (M* > 2e10 Msun) and is not present at z=2. Altogether this provides evidence for a slow downfall of the star formation efficiency in massive Main Sequence galaxies. The resulting loss of star formation is found to be rising starting from z=2 to reach a level comparable to the mass growth of the quiescent population by z=1. We finally discuss the possible physical origin of this phenomenon.Comment: 21 pages, 15 figures, accepted for publication in A&

Intracluster stellar population properties from N-body cosmological simulations -- I. Constraints at z=0z=0

We use a high resolution collisionless simulation of a Virgo--like cluster in a $\Lambda$CDM cosmology to determine the velocity and clustering properties of the diffuse stellar component in the intracluster region at the present epoch. The simulated cluster builds up hierarchically and tidal interactions between member galaxies and the cluster potential produce a diffuse stellar component free-flying in the intracluster medium. Here we adopt an empirical scheme to identify tracers of the stellar component in the simulation and hence study its properties. We find that at $z=0$ the intracluster stellar light is mostly unrelaxed in velocity space and clustered in structures whose typical clustering radii are about 50 kpc at R=400--500 kpc from the cluster center, and predict the radial velocity distribution expected in spectroscopic follow-up surveys. Finally, we compare the spatial clustering in the simulation with the properties of the Virgo intracluster stellar population, as traced by ongoing intracluster planetary nebulae surveys in Virgo. The preliminary results indicate a substantial agreement with the observed clustering properties of the diffuse stellar population in Virgo.Comment: 39 pages, 10 figures, 8 tables, in press on ApJ. Bad image quality for some figures because resizing is neede