L. Marchetti

HerMES : SPIRE galaxy number counts at 250, 350, and 500 μm

Emission at far-infrared wavelengths makes up a significant fraction of the total light detected from galaxies over the age of Universe. Herschel provides an opportunity for studying galaxies at the peak wavelength of their emission. Our aim is to provide a benchmark for models of galaxy population evolution and to test pre-existing models of galaxies. With the Herschel Multi-tiered Extra-galactic survey, HerMES, we have observed a number of fields of different areas and sensitivity using the SPIRE instrument on Herschel. We have determined the number counts of galaxies down to ~20 mJy. Our constraints from directly counting galaxies are consistent with, though more precise than, estimates from the BLAST fluctuation analysis. We have found a steep rise in the Euclidean normalised counts <100 mJy. We have directly resolved ~15% of the infrared extra-galactic background at the wavelength near where it peaks.

Mid- and far-infrared luminosity functions and galaxy evolution from multiwavelength Spitzer observations up to z ~ 2.5

Context. Studies of the infrared (IR) emission of cosmic sources have proven essential to constraining the evolutionary history of cosmic star formation and the gravitational accretion of nuclear black holes, because many of these events occur inside heavily dust-extinguished environments. Aims. The Spitzer Space Telescope has provided a large amount of data to constrain the nature and cosmological evolution of infrared source populations. In the present paper we exploit a large homogeneous dataset to derive a self-consistent picture of IR emission based on the time-dependent λ_(eff) = 24, 15, 12, and 8 μm monochromatic and bolometric IR luminosity functions (LF) over the full 0 < z < 2.5 redshift range. Methods. Our present analysis is based on a combination of data from deep Spitzer surveys of the VIMOS VLT Deep Survey (VVDS-SWIRE) and GOODS fields. To our limiting flux of S_(24) = 400 μJy, our sample derived from VVDS-SWIRE includes 1494 sources, and 666 and 904 sources brighter than S_(24) = 80 μJy are catalogued in GOODS-S and GOODS-N, respectively, for a total area of ~0.9 square degrees. Apart from a few galaxies, we obtain reliable optical identifications and redshifts for all these sources, providing a rich and robust dataset for our luminosity function determination. The final combined reliable sample includes 3029 sources, the fraction with photometric redshifts being 72% over all redshifts and almost all galaxies at z > 1.5. Based on the multiwavelength information available in these areas, we constrain the LFs at 8, 12, 15, and 24 μm. We also infer the total IR luminosities from our best-fit model of the observed SEDs of each source, and use this to derive the bolometric (8–1000 μm) LF and comoving volume emissivity to z ~ 2.5. Results. In the redshift interval 0 1. The mean redshift of the peak in the source number density shifts with luminosity: the brightest IR galaxies appear to form stars at earlier cosmic times (z > 1.5), while star formation in the less luminous galaxies continues until more recent epochs (z ~ 1 for L_(IR) < 10^(11)_☉), in overall agreement with similar analyses in the literature. Conclusions. Our results are indicative of a rapid increase in the galaxy IR comoving volume emissivity up to z ~ 1 and a constant average emissivity at z > 1. We also appear to measure a difference in the evolutionary rate of the source number densities as a function of luminosity, which is consistent with the downsizing evolutionary patterns reported for other samples of cosmic sources.

HerMES: Far infrared properties of known AGN in the HerMES fields

Nuclear and starburst activity are known to often occur concomitantly. Herschel-SPIRE provides sampling of the FIR SEDs of type 1 and type 2 AGN, allowing for the separation between the hot dust (torus) and cold dust (starburst) emission. We study large samples of spectroscopically confirmed type 1 and type 2 AGN lying within the Herschel Multi-tiered Extragalactic Survey (HerMES) fields observed during the science demonstration phase, aiming to understand their FIR colour distributions and constrain their starburst contributions. We find that one third of the spectroscopically confirmed AGN in the HerMES fields have 5-sigma detections at 250um, in agreement with previous (sub)mm AGN studies. Their combined Spitzer-MIPS and Herschel-SPIRE colours - specifically S(250)/S(70) vs. S(70)/S(24) - quite clearly separate them from the non-AGN, star-forming galaxy population, as their 24-um flux is dominated by the hot torus emission. However, their SPIRE colours alone do not differ from those of non-AGN galaxies. SED fitting shows that all those AGN need a starburst component to fully account for their FIR emission. For objects at z > 2, we find a correlation between the infrared luminosity attributed to the starburst component, L(SB), and the AGN accretion luminosity, L(acc), with L(SB) propto L(acc)^0.35. Type 2 AGN detected at 250um show on average higher L(SB) than type 1 objects but their number is still too low to establish whether this trend indicates stronger star-formation activity.

HerMES: deep number counts at 250 μm, 350 μm and 500 μm in the COSMOS and GOODS-N fields and the build-up of the cosmic infrared background

Aims. The Spectral and Photometric Imaging REceiver (SPIRE) onboard the Herschel space telescope has provided confusion limited maps of deep fields at 250 μm, 350 μm, and 500 μm, as part of the Herschel Multi-tiered Extragalactic Survey (HerMES). Unfortunately, due to confusion, only a small fraction of the cosmic infrared background (CIB) can be resolved into individually-detected sources. Our goal is to produce deep galaxy number counts and redshift distributions below the confusion limit at SPIRE wavelengths (~20 mJy), which we then use to place strong constraints on the origins of the cosmic infrared background and on models of galaxy evolution. Methods. We individually extracted the bright SPIRE sources (>20 mJy) in the COSMOS field with a method using the positions, the flux densities, and the redshifts of the 24 μm sources as a prior, and derived the number counts and redshift distributions of the bright SPIRE sources. For fainter SPIRE sources (<20 mJy), we reconstructed the number counts and the redshift distribution below the confusion limit using the deep 24 μm catalogs associated with photometric redshift and information provided by the stacking of these sources into the deep SPIRE maps of the GOODS-N and COSMOS fields. Finally, by integrating all these counts, we studied the contribution of the galaxies to the CIB as a function of their flux density and redshift. Results. Through stacking, we managed to reconstruct the source counts per redshift slice down to ~2 mJy in the three SPIRE bands, which lies about a factor 10 below the 5σ confusion limit. Our measurements place tight constraints on source population models. None of the pre-existing models are able to reproduce our results at better than 3-σ. Finally, we extrapolate our counts to zero flux density in order to derive an estimate of the total contribution of galaxies to the CIB, finding 10.1_(-2.3)^(+2.6) nW m^(-2) sr^(-1), 6.5_(-1.6)^(+1.7) nW m^(-2) sr^(-1), and 2.8_(-0.8)^(+0.9) nW m^(-2) sr^(-1) at 250 μm, 350 μm, and 500 μm, respectively. These values agree well with FIRAS absolute measurements, suggesting our number counts and their extrapolation are sufficient to explain the CIB. We find that half of the CIB is emitted at z = 1.04, 1.20, and 1.25, respectively. Finally, combining our results with other works, we estimate the energy budget contained in the CIB between 8 μm and 1000 μm: 26_(-3)^(+7) nW m^(-2) sr^(-1).

The Herschel census of infrared SEDs through cosmic time

Using Herschel data from the deepest SPIRE and PACS surveys (HerMES and PEP) in COSMOS, GOODS-S and GOODS-N, we examine the dust properties of infrared (IR)-luminous (LIR > 1010 L⊙) galaxies at 0.1 45 K) SEDs and cold (T < 25 K), cirrus-dominated SEDs are rare, with most sources being within the range occupied by warm starbursts such as M82 and cool spirals such as M51. We observe a luminosity–temperature (L-T) relation, where the average dust temperature of log [LIR/L⊙] ∼ 12.5 galaxies is about 10 K higher than that of their log [LIR/L⊙] ∼ 10.5 counterparts. However, although the increased dust heating in more luminous systems is the driving factor behind the L-T relation, the increase in dust mass and/or starburst size with luminosity plays a dominant role in shaping it. Our results show that the dust conditions in IR-luminous sources evolve with cosmic time: at high redshift, dust temperatures are on average up to 10 K lower than what is measured locally (z ≲ 0.1). This is manifested as a flattening of the L-T relation, suggesting that (ultra)luminous infrared galaxies [(U)LIRGs] in the early Universe are typically characterized by a more extended dust distribution and/or higher dust masses than local equivalent sources. Interestingly, the evolution in dust temperature is luminosity dependent, with the fraction of LIRGs with T < 35 K showing a two-fold increase from z ∼ 0 to z ∼ 2, whereas that of ULIRGs with T < 35 K shows a six-fold increase. Our results suggest a greater diversity in the IR-luminous population at high redshift, particularly for ULIRGs.

HerMES: deep galaxy number counts from a P(D) fluctuation analysis of SPIRE Science Demonstration Phase observations

Dusty, star-forming galaxies contribute to a bright, currently unresolved cosmic far-infrared background. Deep Herschel-Spectral and Photometric Imaging Receiver (SPIRE) images designed to detect and characterize the galaxies that comprise this background are highly confused, such that the bulk lies below the classical confusion limit. We analyse three fields from the Herschel Multi-tiered Extragalactic Survey (HerMES) programme in all three SPIRE bands (250, 350 and 500 μm); parametrized galaxy number count models are derived to a depth of ~2 mJy beam^(−1), approximately four times the depth of previous analyses at these wavelengths, using a probability of deflection [P(D)] approach for comparison to theoretical number count models. Our fits account for 64, 60 and 43 per cent of the far-infrared background in the three bands. The number counts are consistent with those based on individually detected SPIRE sources, but generally inconsistent with most galaxy number count models, which generically overpredict the number of bright galaxies and are not as steep as the P(D)-derived number counts. Clear evidence is found for a break in the slope of the differential number counts at low flux densities. Systematic effects in the P(D) analysis are explored. We find that the effects of clustering have a small impact on the data, and the largest identified systematic error arises from uncertainties in the SPIRE beam.

HerMES: CANDIDATE HIGH-REDSHIFT GALAXIES DISCOVERED WITH HERSCHEL/SPIRE*, **

We present a method for selecting z > 4 dusty, star-forming galaxies (DSFGs) using Herschel/Spectral and Photometric Imaging Receiver 250/350/500 μm flux densities to search for red sources. We apply this method to 21 deg2 of data from the HerMES survey to produce a catalog of 38 high-z candidates. Follow-up of the first five of these sources confirms that this method is efficient at selecting high-z DSFGs, with 4/5 at z = 4.3-6.3 (and the remaining source at z = 3.4), and that they are some of the most luminous dusty sources known. Comparison with previous DSFG samples, mostly selected at longer wavelengths (e.g., 850 μm) and in single-band surveys, shows that our method is much more efficient at selecting high-z DSFGs, in the sense that a much larger fraction are at z > 3. Correcting for the selection completeness and purity, we find that the number of bright (S 500 μm ≥ 30 mJy), red Herschel sources is 3.3 ± 0.8 deg–2. This is much higher than the number predicted by current models, suggesting that the DSFG population extends to higher redshifts than previously believed. If the shape of the luminosity function for high-z DSFGs is similar to that at z ~ 2, rest-frame UV based studies may be missing a significant component of the star formation density at z = 4-6, even after correction for extinction.

Discovery of a Multiply Lensed Submillimeter Galaxy in Early HerMES Herschel/SPIRE Data

We report the discovery of a bright (

First results from HerMES on the evolution of the submillimetre luminosity function

f(250\mum) > 400

Cold dust and young starbursts: Spectral energy distributions of Herschel SPIRE sources from the HerMES survey

mJy), multiply-lensed submillimeter galaxy \obj\ in {\it Herschel}/SPIRE Science Demonstration Phase data from the HerMES project. Interferometric 880\mum\ Submillimeter Array observations resolve at least four images with a large separation of