Emilio Romano-Diaz

OVERDENSITIES OF Y-DROPOUT GALAXIES FROM THE BRIGHTEST-OF-REIONIZING GALAXIES SURVEY: A CANDIDATE PROTOCLUSTER AT REDSHIFT z ≈ 8*

Theoretical and numerical modeling of the assembly of dark-matter halos predicts that the most massive and luminous galaxies at high redshift are surrounded by overdensities of fainter companions. We test this prediction with Hubble Space Telescope observations acquired by our Brightest of Reionizing Galaxies (BoRG) survey, which identified four very bright z ∼ 8 candidates as Y098-dropout sources in four of the 23 non-contiguous WFC3 fields observed. We extend here the search for Y098dropouts to fainter luminosities (M∗ galaxies with MAB ∼ −20), with detections at > 5� confidence (compared to the 8� confidence threshold adopted earlier) identifying 17 new candidates. We demonstrate that there is a correlation between number counts of faint and bright Y098-dropouts at > 99.84% confidence. Field BoRG58, which contains the best bright z ∼ 8 candidate (MAB = −21.3), has the most significant overdensity of faint Y098-dropouts. Four new sources are located within 70 ′′ (corresponding to 3.1 comoving Mpc at z = 8) from the previously known brighter z ∼ 8 candidate. The overdensity of Y098-dropouts in this field has a physical origin to very high confidence (p > 99.975%), independent of completeness and contamination rate of the Y098-dropout selection. We modeled the overdensity by means of cosmological simulations and estimate that the principal dark matter halo has mass Mh ≈ (4−7)×10 11 M⊙ (∼ 5� density peak) and is surrounded by several Mh ≈ 10 11 M⊙ halos which could host the fainter dropouts. In this scenario, we predict that all halos will eventually merge into a Mh > 2 × 10 14 M⊙ galaxy cluster by z = 0. Follow-up observations with ground and space

EVOLUTION OF THE PHASE-SPACE DENSITY IN DARK MATTER HALOS

The evolution of the phase-space density profile in dark matter (DM) halos is investigated by means of constrained simulations, designed to control the merging history of a given DM halo. Halos evolve through a series of quiescent phases of a slow accretion intermitted by violent events of major mergers. In the quiescent phases the density of the halo closely follows the NFW profile and the phase-space density profile, Q(r) , is given by the Taylor & Navarro power law, r−β, where β ≈ 1.9 and stays remarkably stable over the Hubble time. Expressing the phase-space density by the NFW parameters, Q(r) = Qs(r/Rs)−β, the evolution of Q is determined by Qs. We have found that the effective mass surface density within Rs, Σs ≡ ρsRs, remains constant throughout the evolution of a given DM halo along the main branch of its merging tree. This invariance entails that Qs ∝ Rs−5/2 and Q(r) ∝ Σs−1/2Rs−5/2(r/Rs)−β. It follows that the phase-space density remains constant, in the sense of Qs = const ., in the quiescent phases and it decreases as Rs−5/2 in the violent ones. The physical origin of the NFW density profile and the phase-space density power law is still unknown. Yet, the numerical experiments show that halos recover these relations after the violent phases. The major mergers drive Rs to increase and Qs to decrease discontinuously while keeping Qs × Rs5/2 = const . The virial equilibrium in the quiescent phases implies that a DM halos evolves along a sequence of NFW profiles with constant energy per unit volume (i.e., pressure) within Rs.

Disk Evolution and Bar Triggering Driven by Interactions with Dark Matter Substructure

We study formation and evolution of bar-disk systems in fully self-consistent cosmological simulations of galaxy formation in the ΛCDM WMAP3 universe. In a representative model we find that the first generation of bars form in response to the asymmetric dark matter (DM) distribution (i.e., DM filament) and quickly decay. Subsequent bar generations form and are destroyed during the major merger epoch permeated by interactions with a DM substructure (subhalos). A long-lived bar is triggered by a tide from a subhalo and survives for ~10 Gyr. The evolution of this bar is followed during the subsequent numerous minor mergers and interactions with the substructure. Together with intrinsic factors, these interactions largely determine the stellar bar evolution. The bar strength and its pattern speed anticorrelate, except during interactions and the formation of a secondary (nuclear) bar. For about 5 Gyr bar pattern speed increases substantially despite the loss of angular momentum to stars and cuspy DM halo. We analyze the evolution of stellar populations in the bar-disk and relate them to the underlying dynamics. While the bar is made mainly of an intermediate age, ~5-6 Gyr, disk stars at z = 0, a secondary nuclear bar which surfaces at z ~ 0.1 is made of younger, ~1-3 Gyr stars.

Evolution of Characteristic Quantities for Dark Matter Halo Density Profiles

We have investigated the effect of an assembly history on the evolution of galactic dark matter (DM) halos of 1012 h-1 M☉ using constrained realizations of random Gaussian fields. Five different realizations of a DM halo with distinct merging histories were constructed and have been evolved using collisionless high-resolution N-body simulations. Our main results are as follows: A halo evolves via a sequence of quiescent phases of a slow mass accretion intermitted by violent episodes of major mergers. In the quiescent phases, the density is well fitted by an NFW profile, the inner scale radius Rs and the mass enclosed within it remain constant, and the virial radius (Rvir) grows linearly with the expansion parameter a. Within each quiescent phase the concentration parameter (c) scales as a, and the mass accretion history (Mvir) is well described by the Tasitsiomi et al. fitting formula. In the violent phases the halos are not in a virial dynamical equilibrium and both Rs and Rvir grow discontinuously. The violent episodes drive the halos from one NFW dynamical equilibrium to another. The final structure of a halo, including c, depends on the degree of violence of the major mergers and the number of violent events. Next, we find a distinct difference between the behavior of various NFW parameters taken as averages over an ensemble of halos and those of individual halos. Moreover, the simple scaling relations c-Mvir do not apply to the entire evolution of individual halos, and therefore we have the common notion that late-forming halos are less concentrated than early-forming ones. The entire evolution of the halo cannot be fitted by single analytical expressions.

Constrained Cosmological Simulations of Dark Matter Halos

The formation and structure of dark matter (DM) halos is studied by means of constrained realizations of Gaussian fields using N-body simulations. A series of experiments of the formation of a 10^{12} Msun halo is designed to study the dependence of the density profile on its merging history. We confirm that the halo growth consists of violent and quiescent phases, with the density well approximated by the Navarro-Frenk-White (NFW) profile during the latter phases. We find that (1) the NFW scale radius R_s stays constant during the quiescent phase and grows abruptly during the violent one. In contrast, the virial radius grows linearly during the quiescent and abruptly during the violent phases. (2) The central density stays unchanged during the quiescent phase while dropping abruptly during the violent phase. (3) The value of \rs reflects the violent merging history of the halo, and depends on the number of violent events and their fractional magnitudes, independent of the time and order of these events. It does not reflect the formation time of the halo. (4) The fractional change in R_s is a nonlinear function of the fractional absorbed kinetic energy within R_s in a violent event.

Observational properties of simulated galaxies in overdense and average regions at redshifts z ≃ 6–12

We use high-resolution zoom-in cosmological simulations of galaxies of Romano-Diaz et al., post-processing them with a panchromatic three-dimensional radiation transfer code to obtain the galaxy UV luminosity function (LF) at z ~ 6-12. The galaxies are followed in a rare, heavily overdense region within a ~ 5-sigma density peak, which can host high-z quasars, and in an average density region, down to the stellar mass of M_star ~ 4* 10^7 Msun. We find that the overdense regions evolve at a substantially accelerated pace --- the most massive galaxy has grown to M_star ~ 8.4*10^10 Msun by z = 6.3, contains dust of M_dust~ 4.1*10^8 Msun, and is associated with a very high star formation rate, SFR ~ 745 Msun/yr.The attained SFR-M_star correlation results in the specific SFR slowly increasing with M_star. Most of the UV radiation in massive galaxies is absorbed by the dust, its escape fraction f_esc is low, increasing slowly with time. Galaxies in the average region have less dust, and agree with the observed UV LF. The LF of the overdense region is substantially higher, and contains much brighter galaxies. The massive galaxies are bright in the infrared (IR) due to the dust thermal emission, with L_IR~ 3.7*10^12 Lsun at z = 6.3, while L_IR < 10^11 Lsun for the low-mass galaxies. Therefore, ALMA can probe massive galaxies in the overdense region up to z ~ 10 with a reasonable integration time. The UV spectral properties of disky galaxies depend significantly upon the viewing angle.The stellar and dust masses of the most massive galaxy in the overdense region are comparable to those of the sub-millimetre galaxy (SMG) found by Riechers et al. at z = 6.3, while the modelled SFR and the sub-millimetre flux fall slightly below the observed one. Statistical significance of these similarities and differences will only become clear with the upcoming ALMA observations.

Galaxy Formation in Heavily Overdense Regions at z ~ 10: The Prevalence of Disks in Massive Halos

Using a high-resolution cosmological numerical simulation, we have analyzed the evolution of galaxies at z ~ 10 in a highly overdense region of the universe. These objects could represent the high-redshift galaxies recently observed by the Hubbles Wide Field Camera 3 and could as well be possible precursors of QSOs at z ~ 6-7. To overcome the sampling and resolution problems in cosmological simulations of these rare regions, we have used the constrained realizations method. Our main result for z ~ 10 shows the high-resolution central region of 3.5 h –1 Mpc radius in comoving coordinates being completely dominated by disk galaxies in the total mass range of 109 h –1 M ☉. We have verified that the gaseous and stellar disks we identify are robust morphological features, capable of surviving the ongoing merger process at these redshifts. Below this mass range, we find a sharp decline in the disk fraction to negligible numbers. At this redshift, the disks appear to be gas-rich compared to z = 0, and the dark matter halos baryon-rich, by a factor of ~2-3 above the average fraction of baryons in the universe. The dominance of disk galaxies in the high-density peaks during the epoch of re-ionization is contrary to the morphology-density trend observed at low redshifts.

Simulating the H2 content of high-redshift galaxies

We introduce a sub-grid model for the non-equilibrium abundance of molecular hydrogen in cosmological simulations of galaxy formation. We improve upon previous work by accounting for the unresolved structure of molecular clouds in a phenomenological way which combines both observational and numerical results on the properties of the turbulent interstellar medium. We apply the model to a cosmological simulation of the formation of a Milky-Way-sized galaxy at z=2, and compare the results to those obtained using other popular prescriptions that compute the equilibrium abundance of H2. In these runs we introduce an explicit link between star formation and the local H2 abundance, and perform an additional simulation in which star formation is linked directly to the density of cold gas. In better agreement with observations, we find that the simulated galaxy produces less stars and harbors a larger gas reservoir when star formation is regulated by molecular hydrogen. In this case, the galaxy is composed of a younger stellar population as early star formation is inhibited in small, metal poor dark-matter haloes which cannot efficiently produce H2. The number of luminous satellites orbiting within the virial radius of the galaxy at z=2 is reduced by 10-30 per cent in models with H2-regulated star formation.

The Gentle Growth of Galaxies at High Redshifts in Overdense Environments

We have explored prevailing modes of galaxy growth for redshifts z ∼ 6–14, comparing substantially overdense and normal regions of the universe, using high-resolution zoom-in cosmological simulations. Such rare overdense regions have been projected to host high-z quasars. We demonstrate that galaxies in such environments grow predominantly by a smooth accretion from cosmological filaments which dominates the mass input from major, intermediate, and minor mergers. We find that by z ∼ 6, the accumulated galaxy mass fraction from mergers falls short by a factor of 10 of the cumulative accretion mass for galaxies in the overdense regions, and by a factor of 5 in the normal environments. Moreover, the rate of the stellar mass input from mergers also lies below that of an in situ star formation (SF) rate. The fraction of stellar masses in galaxies contributed by mergers in overdense regions �

THE TEMPERATURE OF HOT GAS IN GALAXIES AND CLUSTERS: BARYONS DANCING TO THE TUNE OF DARK MATTER

The temperature profile of hot gas in galaxies and galaxy clusters is largely determined by the depth of the total gravitational potential and thereby by the dark matter (DM) distribution. We use high-resolution hydrodynamical simulations of galaxy formation to derive a surprisingly simple relation between the gas temperature and DM properties. We show that this relation holds not just for galaxy clusters but also for equilibrated and relaxed galaxies at radii beyond the central stellar-dominated region of typically a few kpc. It is then clarified how a measurement of the temperature and density of the hot gas component can lead to an indirect measurement of the DM velocity anisotropy in galaxies. We also study the temperature relation for galaxy clusters in the presence of self-regulated, recurrent active galactic nuclei (AGNs), and demonstrate that this temperature relation even holds outside the inner region of {approx}30 kpc in clusters with an active AGN.