We present results for 19 “Lyman-break analogs” observed with Keck/OSIRIS with an adaptive-optics-assisted
spatial resolution of less than 200 pc. We detect satellites/companions, diffuse emission, and velocity shear, all
with high signal-to-noise ratios. These galaxies present remarkably high velocity dispersion along the line of sight
(~70 km s^(−1)), much higher than standard star-forming spirals in the low-redshift universe. We artificially redshift
our data to z ~ 2.2 to allow for a direct comparison with observations of high-z Lyman-break galaxies and find
striking similarities between both samples. This suggests that either similar physical processes are responsible
for their observed properties, or, alternatively, that it is very difficult to distinguish between different mechanisms
operating in the low- versus high-redshift starburst galaxies based on the available data. The comparison between
morphologies in the UV/optical continuum and our kinemetry analysis often shows that neither is by itself sufficient
to confirm or completely rule out the contribution from recent merger events. We find a correlation between the
kinematic properties and stellar mass, in that more massive galaxies show stronger evidence for a disk-like structure.
This suggests a co-evolutionary process between the stellar mass buildup and the formation of morphological and
dynamical substructure within the galaxy