Longslit Optical Spectroscopy of Powerful Far-Infrared Galaxies

Abstract

It has been known since the IRAS mission that there exist galaxies with far-infrared luminosities of 1011–1012Lo, and LFTR/LB = 10–100. Through extensive modelling and observations of HII-region/molecular cloud complexes in the Galaxy, this infrared radiation is believed to be thermal emission from heated dust grains (c.f. review by Stein and Soifer 1983). While starburst models are consistent with the data over a large range in wavelength, direct evidence for sizeable populations of young stars is scarce, and in many cases the presence of an active nucleus either cannot be ruled out, or is required on the basis of energy considerations. In order to better understand the energy source responsible for heating the dust, we have undertaken a spectroscopic survey of galaxies chosen to have far-infrared spectral energy distributions similar to the prototypical class members Arp 220, NGC 6240, NGC 3690, and Mrk 231. It was required that between 25μ and 60μ, α ≤ −1.5, and that between 60μ and 100μ, α ≥ −0.5, where Sv α vα.