Identification of the progenitors of rich clusters and member galaxies in rapid formation at z > 2

Abstract

Abstract We present the results of near-infrared spectroscopy of Hα emitters (HAEs) associated with two protoclusters around radio galaxies (PKS 1138−262 at z = 2.2 and USS 1558−003 at z = 2.5) with the Multi-Object Infrared Camera and Spectrograph (MOIRCS) on the Subaru telescope. Among the HAE candidates constructed from our narrow-band imaging, we have confirmed membership of 27 and 36 HAEs for the respective protoclusters, with a success rate of 70 per cent of our observed targets. The large number of spectroscopically confirmed members per cluster has enabled us for the first time to reveal the detailed kinematical structures of the protoclusters at z > 2. The clusters show prominent substructures such as clumps, filaments and velocity gradients, suggesting that they are still in the midst of rapid construction to grow to rich clusters at later times. We also estimate the dynamical masses of the clusters and substructures, assuming their local virialization. The inferred masses (∼1014 M⊙) of the protocluster cores are consistent with their being typical progenitors of the present-day most massive class of galaxy clusters (∼1015 M⊙) if we take into account the typical mass growth history of clusters. We then calculate the integrated star formation rates of the protocluster cores normalized by the dynamical masses and compare these with lower redshift descendants. We see a marked increase of star-forming activities in the cluster cores, by almost three orders of magnitude, as we go back in time to 11 billion years ago; this scales as (1 + z)6.