- ID:
- ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/ApJ/804/76
- Title:
- ZnII lines and collision strengths
- Short Name:
- J/ApJ/804/76
- Date:
- 21 Oct 2021
- Publisher:
- CDS
- Description:
- Damped Ly{alpha} (DLA) and sub-DLA absorbers in quasar spectra provide the most sensitive tools for measuring the element abundances of distant galaxies. The estimation of abundances from absorption lines depends sensitively on the accuracy of the atomic data used. We have started a project to produce new atomic spectroscopic parameters for optical and UV spectral lines using state-of-the-art computer codes employing a very broad configuration interaction (CI) basis. Here we report our results for ZnII, an ion used widely in studies of the interstellar medium (ISM) as well as DLAs and sub-DLAs. We report new calculations of many energy levels of Zn II and the line strengths of the resulting radiative transitions. Our calculations use the CI approach within a numerical Hartree-Fock framework. We use both nonrelativistic and quasi-relativistic one-electron radial orbitals. We have incorporated the results of these atomic calculations into the plasma simulation code Cloudy and applied them to a lab plasma and examples of a DLA and a sub-DLA. Our values of the ZnII {lambda}{lambda}2026,2062 oscillator strengths are higher than previous values by 0.10dex. The Cloudy calculations for representative absorbers with the revised Zn atomic data imply ionization corrections lower than calculated earlier by 0.05dex. The new results imply that Zn metallicities should be lower by 0.1dex for DLAs and by 0.13-0.15dex for sub-DLAs than in past studies. Our results can be applied to other studies of ZnII in the Galactic and extragalactic ISM.
Number of results to display per page
Search Results
- ID:
- ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/A+A/564/A41
- Title:
- ZnIV and ZnV oscillator strengths
- Short Name:
- J/A+A/564/A41
- Date:
- 21 Oct 2021
- Publisher:
- CDS
- Description:
- For the spectral analysis of high-resolution and high-signal-to-noise (S/N) spectra of hot stars, state-of-the-art non-local thermodynamic equilibrium (NLTE) model atmospheres are mandatory. These are strongly dependent on the reliability of the atomic data that is used for their calculation. In a recent analysis of the ultraviolet (UV) spectrum of the DA-type white dwarf G191-B2B, 21 ZnIV lines were newly identified. Because of the lack of ZnIV data, transition probabilities of the isoelectronic GeVI were adapted for a first, coarse determination of the photospheric Zn abundance. Reliable ZnIV and ZnV oscillator strengths are used to improve the Zn abundance determination and to identify more Zn lines in the spectra of G191-B2B and the DO-type white dwarf RE 0503-289.
- ID:
- ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/ApJ/661/88
- Title:
- Zn measurements in sub-DLAs and DLAs QSOs
- Short Name:
- J/ApJ/661/88
- Date:
- 21 Oct 2021
- Publisher:
- CDS
- Description:
- Observations of low mean metallicity of damped Ly{alpha} (DLA) quasar absorbers at all redshifts studied appear to contradict the predictions for the global mean interstellar metallicity in galaxies from cosmic chemical evolution models. On the other hand, a number of metal-rich sub-DLA systems have been identified recently, and the fraction of metal-rich sub-DLAs appears to be considerably larger than that of metal-rich DLAs, especially at z<1.5. In view of this, here we investigate the evolution of metallicity in sub-DLAs. We find that the mean Zn metallicity of the observed sub-DLAs may be higher than that of the observed DLAs, especially at low redshifts, reaching a near-solar level at z<~1. This trend does not appear to be an artifact of sample selection, the use of Zn, the use of N_HI_ weighting, or observational sensitivity.
- ID:
- ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/A+AS/137/293
- Title:
- ZOAG galaxies in 115{deg}<l<157{deg}
- Short Name:
- J/A+AS/137/293
- Date:
- 21 Oct 2021
- Publisher:
- CDS
- Description:
- A systematic search by microscope for non-stellar objects on 19 POSS II R film copies has led to the detection of 3455 objects. The vast majority are obscured galaxies, most of which are new. We present coordinates and optical diameters of these galaxy candidates, list coincidences with objects in optical and infrared catalogues.
- ID:
- ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/ApJ/854/158
- Title:
- z<0.5 PG quasars IR energy distributions
- Short Name:
- J/ApJ/854/158
- Date:
- 21 Oct 2021
- Publisher:
- CDS
- Description:
- The interstellar medium is crucial to understanding the physics of active galaxies and the coevolution between supermassive black holes and their host galaxies. However, direct gas measurements are limited by sensitivity and other uncertainties. Dust provides an efficient indirect probe of the total gas. We apply this technique to a large sample of quasars, whose total gas content would be prohibitively expensive to measure. We present a comprehensive study of the full (1 to 500{mu}m) infrared spectral energy distributions of 87 redshift <0.5 quasars selected from the Palomar-Green sample, using photometric measurements from 2MASS, WISE, and Herschel, combined with Spitzer mid-infrared (5-40{mu}m) spectra. With a newly developed Bayesian Markov Chain Monte Carlo fitting method, we decompose various overlapping contributions to the integrated spectral energy distribution, including starlight, warm dust from the torus, and cooler dust on galaxy scales. This procedure yields a robust dust mass, which we use to infer the gas mass, using a gas-to-dust ratio constrained by the host galaxy stellar mass. Most (90%) quasar hosts have gas fractions similar to those of massive, star-forming galaxies, although a minority (10%) seem genuinely gas-deficient, resembling present-day massive early-type galaxies. This result indicates that "quasar mode" feedback does not occur or is ineffective in the host galaxies of low-redshift quasars. We also find that quasars can boost the interstellar radiation field and heat dust on galactic scales. This cautions against the common practice of using the far-infrared luminosity to estimate the host galaxy star formation rate.
- ID:
- ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/ApJ/833/19
- Title:
- 0.02<z<1.4 post-starburst SDSS galaxies
- Short Name:
- J/ApJ/833/19
- Date:
- 21 Oct 2021
- Publisher:
- CDS
- Description:
- Post-starburst galaxies are in the transitional stage between blue, star-forming galaxies and red, quiescent galaxies and therefore hold important clues for our understanding of galaxy evolution. In this paper, we systematically searched for and identified a large sample of post-starburst galaxies from the spectroscopic data set of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) Data Release 9. In total, we found more than 6000 objects with redshifts between z~0.05 and z~1.3, making this the largest sample of post-starburst galaxies in the literature. We calculated the luminosity function of the post-starburst galaxies using two uniformly selected subsamples: the SDSS main galaxy sample and the Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey CMASS sample. The luminosity functions are reasonably fit by half-Gaussian functions. The peak magnitudes shift as a function of redshift from M~-23.5 at z~0.8 to M~-20.3 at z~0.1. This is consistent with the downsizing trend, whereby more massive galaxies form earlier than low-mass galaxies. We compared the mass of the post-starburst stellar population found in our sample to the decline of the global star formation rate and found that only a small amount (~1%) of all star formation quenching in the redshift range z=0.2-0.7 results in post-starburst galaxies in the luminosity range our sample is sensitive to. Therefore, luminous post-starburst galaxies are not the place where most of the decline in the star formation rate of the universe is happening.
- ID:
- ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/ApJ/853/139
- Title:
- 1-(Z)-1-propanimine rotational transitions
- Short Name:
- J/ApJ/853/139
- Date:
- 21 Oct 2021
- Publisher:
- CDS
- Description:
- We consider six isomeric groups (CH_3_N, CH_5_N, C_2_H_5_N, C_2_H_7_N, C_3_H_7_N, and C_3_H_9_N) to review the presence of amines and aldimines within the interstellar medium (ISM). Each of these groups contains at least one aldimine or amine. Methanimine (CH_2_NH) from CH_3_N and methylamine (CH_3_NH_2_) from CH_5_N isomeric group were detected a few decades ago. Recently, the presence of ethanimine (CH_3_CHNH) from C_2_H_5_N isomeric group has been discovered in the ISM. This prompted us to investigate the possibility of detecting any aldimine or amine from the very next three isomeric groups in this sequence: C_2_H_7_N, C_3_H_7_N, and C_3_H_9_N. We employ high-level quantum chemical calculations to estimate accurate energies of all the species. According to enthalpies of formation, optimized energies, and expected intensity ratio, we found that ethylamine (precursor of glycine) from C_2_H_7_N isomeric group, (1Z)-1-propanimine from C_3_H_7_N isomeric group, and trimethylamine from C_3_H_9_N isomeric group are the most viable candidates for the future astronomical detection. Based on our quantum chemical calculations and from other approximations (from prevailing similar types of reactions), a complete set of reaction pathways to the synthesis of ethylamine and (1Z)-1-propanimine is prepared. Moreover, a large gas-grain chemical model is employed to study the presence of these species in the ISM. Our modeling results suggest that ethylamine and (1Z)-1-propanimine could efficiently be formed in hot-core regions and could be observed with present astronomical facilities. Radiative transfer modeling is also implemented to additionally aid their discovery in interstellar space.
- ID:
- ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/ApJ/826/114
- Title:
- z~3-6 protoclusters in the CFHTLS deep fields
- Short Name:
- J/ApJ/826/114
- Date:
- 21 Oct 2021
- Publisher:
- CDS
- Description:
- We present the discovery of three protoclusters at z~3-4 with spectroscopic confirmation in the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope Legacy Survey Deep Fields. In these fields, we investigate the large-scale projected sky distribution of z~3-6 Lyman-break galaxies and identify 21 protocluster candidates from regions that are overdense at more than 4{sigma} overdensity significance. Based on cosmological simulations, it is expected that more than 76% of these candidates will evolve into a galaxy cluster of at least a halo mass of 10^14^ M_{sun}_ at z=0. We perform follow-up spectroscopy for eight of the candidates using Subaru/FOCAS, Keck II/DEIMOS, and Gemini-N/GMOS. In total we target 462 dropout candidates and obtain 138 spectroscopic redshifts. We confirm three real protoclusters at z=3-4 with more than five members spectroscopically identified and find one to be an incidental overdense region by mere chance alignment. The other four candidate regions at z~5-6 require more spectroscopic follow-up in order to be conclusive. A z=3.67 protocluster, which has 11 spectroscopically confirmed members, shows a remarkable core-like structure composed of a central small region (<0.5 physical Mpc) and an outskirts region (~1.0 physical Mpc). The Ly{alpha} equivalent widths of members of the protocluster are significantly smaller than those of field galaxies at the same redshift, while there is no difference in the UV luminosity distributions. These results imply that some environmental effects start operating as early as at z~4 along with the growth of the protocluster structure. This study provides an important benchmark for our analysis of protoclusters in the upcoming Subaru/HSC imaging survey and its spectroscopic follow-up with the Subaru/PFS that will detect thousands of protoclusters up to z~6.
- ID:
- ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/ApJ/768/105
- Title:
- z~5 QSO luminosity function from SDSS Stripe 82
- Short Name:
- J/ApJ/768/105
- Date:
- 21 Oct 2021
- Publisher:
- CDS
- Description:
- We present a measurement of the Type I quasar luminosity function at z=5 using a large sample of spectroscopically confirmed quasars selected from optical imaging data. We measure the bright end (M_1450_<-26) with Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) data covering ~6000deg^2^, then extend to lower luminosities (M_1450_<-24) with newly discovered, faint z~5 quasars selected from 235deg^2^ of deep, coadded imaging in the SDSS Stripe 82 region (the celestial equator in the Southern Galactic Cap). The faint sample includes 14 quasars with spectra obtained as ancillary science targets in the SDSS-III Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey, and 59 quasars observed at the MMT and Magellan telescopes. We construct a well-defined sample of 4.7<z<5.1 quasars that is highly complete, with 73 spectroscopic identifications out of 92 candidates. Our color selection method is also highly efficient: of the 73 spectra obtained, 71 are high-redshift quasars. These observations reach below the break in the luminosity function (M_1450_^*^~-27). The bright-end slope is steep ({beta}<~-4), with a constraint of {beta}<-3.1 at 95% confidence. The break luminosity appears to evolve strongly at high redshift, providing an explanation for the flattening of the bright-end slope reported previously. We find a factor of ~2 greater decrease in the number density of luminous quasars (M_1450_<-26) from z=5 to z=6 than from z=4 to z=5, suggesting a more rapid decline in quasar activity at high redshift than found in previous surveys. Our model for the quasar luminosity function predicts that quasars generate ~30% of the ionizing photons required to keep hydrogen in the universe ionized at z=5.
- ID:
- ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/MNRAS/435/1198
- Title:
- z~6 QSOs CIV doublet absorption systems
- Short Name:
- J/MNRAS/435/1198
- Date:
- 21 Oct 2021
- Publisher:
- CDS
- Description:
- We present the results of observations taken with the X-shooter spectrograph devoted to the study of quasars at z~6. This paper focuses on the properties of metals at high redshift traced, in particular, by the CIV doublet absorption systems. Six objects were observed with resolutions =~27 and 34km/s in the visual, and 37.5 and 53.5km/s in the near-infrared. We detected 10^2^ CIV lines in the range: 4.35<z<6.2 of which 27 are above z~5. Thanks to the characteristics of resolution and spectral coverage of X-shooter, we could also detect 25 SiIV doublets associated with the CIV at z>~5. The column density distribution function of the CIV line sample is observed to evolve in redshift for z>~5.3, with respect to the normalization defined by low-redshift (1.5<z<4) CIV lines. This behaviour is reflected in the redshift evolution of the CIV cosmic mass density, {Omega}_CIV_, of lines with column density in the range 13.4<logN(CIV)<15, which is consistent with a drop of a factor of ~2 for z>~5.3. Considering only the stronger CIV lines (13.8<logN(CIV)<15), {Omega}_CIV_ gently rises by a factor of ~10 between z=~6.2 and z=~1.5 with a possible flattening towards z~0. The increase is well fitted by a power law: {Omega}_CIV=(2+/-1)x10^-8^[(1+z)/4]^-3.1+/-0.1^. An insight into the properties of the CIV absorbers and their evolution with redshift is obtained by comparing the observed column densities of associated CIV, SiIV and CII absorptions with the output of a set of cloudy photoionization models. As already claimed by cosmological simulations, we find that CIV is a good tracer of the metallicity in the low-density intergalactic medium (IGM) gas at z~5-6 while at z~3 it arises in gas with overdensity {delta}~100.
