Cold Accretion Flows Research Articles

Turbulent cold flows gave birth to the first quasars.

How quasars powered by supermassive black holes formed less than a billion years after the Big Bang is still one of the outstanding problems in astrophysics, 20 years after their discovery1-4. Cosmological simulations suggest that rare cold flows converging on primordial haloes in low-shear environments could have created these quasars if they were 104-105 solar masses at birth, but could not resolve their formation5-8. Semi-analytical studies of the progenitor halo of a primordial quasar found that it favours the formation of such seeds, but could not verify if one actually appeared9. Here we show that a halo at the rare convergence of strong, cold accretion flows creates massive black holes seeds without the need for ultraviolet backgrounds, supersonic streaming motions or even atomic cooling. Cold flows drive violent, supersonic turbulence in the halo, which prevents star formation until it reaches a mass that triggers sudden, catastrophic baryon collapse that forms 31,000 and 40,000 solar-mass stars. This simple, robust process ensures that haloes capable of forming quasars by a redshift of z > 6 produce massive seeds. The first quasars were thus a natural consequence of structure formation in cold dark matter cosmologies, and not exotic, finely tuned environments as previously thought10-14.

Modeling Evolution of Galactic Bars at Cosmic Dawn

We study the evolution of galactic bars using a suite of very high-resolution zoom-in cosmological simulations of galaxies at z ∼ 9–2. Our models were chosen to lie within similar-mass dark matter (DM) halos, log(M vir/M ⊙) ∼ 11.65 ± 0.05, at z = 6, 4, and 2, in high- and low-overdensity environments. We apply two galactic wind feedback mechanisms for each model. All galaxies develop subkiloparsec stellar bars differing in their properties. We find that (1) the high-z bars form in response to various perturbations: mergers, close flybys, cold accretion inflows along the cosmological filaments, etc.; (2) these bars account for the large mass fraction of galaxies; (3) bars display large corotation-to-bar size ratios, are weaker compared to their low-redshift counterparts by measuring their Fourier amplitudes, and are very gas-rich; (4) their pattern speed does not exhibit monotonic decline with time owing to braking against DM, as at low z; (5) bar properties, including their stellar population (star formation rates and metal enrichment), depend sensitively on prevailing feedback; and (6) bars can weaken substantially during cosmological evolution, becoming weak oval distortions—hence bars are destroyed and reformed multiple times, unlike their low-z counterparts. In all cases, bars in our simulations have been triggered by interactions. In summary, not only do stellar bars appear to be a contemporary phenomenon, but based on increased frequency of mergers, flybys, and the strength of cold accretion flows at high z, we also expect them to be ubiquitous at redshifts ≳2—the epoch of rapid galaxy growth and larger stellar dispersion velocities.

A cold accretion flow onto one component of a multiple protostellar system

Context. Gas accretion flows transport material from the cloud core onto the protostar. In multiple protostellar systems, it is not clear if the delivery mechanism is preferential or more evenly distributed among the components. Aims. The distribution of gas accretion flows within the cloud core of the deeply embedded, chemically rich, low-mass multiple protostellar system IRAS 16293−2422 is explored out to 6000 AU. Methods. Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array Band 3 observations of low-J transitions of various molecules, such as HNC, cyanopolyynes (HC3N, HC5N), and N2H+, are used to probe the cloud core structure of IRAS 16293−2422 at ~100 AU resolution. Additional Band 3 archival data provide low-J HCN and SiO lines. These data are compared with the corresponding higher-J lines from the PILS Band 7 data for excitation analysis. The HNC/HCN ratio is used as a temperature tracer. Results. The low-J transitions of HC3N, HC5N, HNC, and N2H+ trace extended and elongated structures from 6000 AU down to ~100 AU, without any accompanying dust continuum emission. Two structures are identified: one traces a flow that is likely accreting toward the most luminous component of the IRAS 16293−2422 A system. Temperatures inferred from the HCN/HNC ratio suggest that the gas in this flow is cold, between 10 and 30 K. The other structure is part of an uv-irradiated cavity wall entrained by one of the outflows driven by the source. The two outflows driven by IRAS 16293−2422 A present different molecular gas distributions. Conclusions. Accretion of cold gas is seen from 6000 AU scales onto IRAS 16293−2422 A but not onto source B, indicating that cloud core material accretion is competitive due to feedback onto a dominant component in an embedded multiple protostellar system. The preferential delivery of material could explain the higher luminosity and multiplicity of source A compared to source B. The results of this work demonstrate that several different molecular species, and multiple transitions of each species, are needed to confirm and characterize accretion flows in protostellar cloud cores.

Discovery of extremely low-metallicity circumgalactic gas at z = 0.5 towards Q0454−220

ABSTRACT We have obtained new observations of the absorption system at zabs = 0.48 towards QSO Q0454−220, which we use to constrain its chemical and physical conditions. The system features metal-enriched gas and previously unknown low-metallicity gas detected ${\sim} 200 \, \mathrm{km \, s^{-1}}$ blueward of the metal-enriched gas. The low-metallicity gas is detected in multiple Lyman series lines but is not detected in any metal lines. Our analysis includes low-ionization (e.g. Fe ii, Mg ii) metal lines, high-ionization (e.g. C iv, O vi, N v) metal lines, and several Lyman series lines. We use new ultraviolet (UV) spectra taken with the Hubble Space Telescope (HST)/Cosmic Origins Spectrograph (COS) along with data taken from HST/Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (STIS), Keck/High Resolution Echelle Spectrometer (HIRES), and Very Large Telescope(VLT)/Ultraviolet and Visual Echelle Spectrograph (UVES). We find that the absorption system can be explained with a photoionized low-ionization phase with [Fe/H] ∼ −0.5 and $n_\mathrm{H} \sim 10^{-2.3} \, \mathrm{cm}^{-3}$, a photoionized high-ionization phase with a conservative lower limit of −3.3 < [Fe/H] and $n_\mathrm{H} \sim 10^{-3.8} \, \mathrm{cm}^{-3}$, and a low-metallicity component with a conservative upper limit of [Fe/H] < −2.5 that may be photoionized or collisionally ionized. We suggest that the low-ionization phase may be due to cold-flow accretion via large-scale filamentary structure or due to recycled accretion, while the high-ionization phase is the result of ancient outflowing material from a nearby galaxy. The low-metallicity component may come from pristine accretion. The velocity spread and disparate conditions among the absorption system’s components suggest a combination of gas arising near galaxies along with gas arising from intergroup material.

Finding Direct-collapse Black Holes at Birth

Abstract Direct-collapse black holes (DCBHs) are currently one of the leading contenders for the origins of the first quasars in the universe, over 300 of which have now been found at z > 6. But the birth of a DCBH in an atomically cooling halo does not by itself guarantee it will become a quasar by z ∼ 7, the halo must also be located in cold accretion flows or later merge with a series of other gas-rich halos capable of fueling the BH’s rapid growth. Here, we present near-infrared luminosities for DCBHs born in cold accretion flows in which they are destined to grow to 109 by z ∼ 7. Our observables, which are derived from cosmological simulations with radiation hydrodynamics with Enzo, reveal that DCBHs could be found by the James Webb Space Telescope at z ≲ 20 and strongly lensed DCBHs might be found in future wide-field surveys by Euclid and the Wide-Field Infrared Space Telescope at z ≲ 15.

Multi-filament gas inflows fuelling young star-forming galaxies

Theory suggests that there are two primary modes of accretion through which dark-matter halos acquire the gas to form and fuel galaxies: hot- and cold-flow accretion. In cold-flow accretion, gas streams along cosmic web filaments to the centre of the halo, allowing for the efficient delivery of star-forming fuel. Recently, two quasar-illuminated H I Lyman ɑ (Lyα)-emitting objects were reported to have properties of cold, rotating structures. However, the spatial and spectral resolution available was insufficient to constrain the radial flows associated with connecting filaments. With the Keck Cosmic Web Imager (KCWI)3, we now have eight times the spatial resolution, permitting the detection of these inspiralling flows. To detect these inflows, we introduce a suite of models that incorporate zonal radial flows, demonstrate their performance on a numerical simulation that exhibits cold-flow accretion, and show that they are an excellent match to KCWI velocity maps of two Lyα emitters observed around high-redshift quasars. These multi-filament inflow models kinematically isolate zones of radial inflow that correspond to extended filamentary emission. The derived gas flux and inflow path is sufficient to fuel the inferred central galaxy star-formation rate and angular momentum. Thus, our kinematic emission maps provide strong evidence that the inflow of gas from the cosmic web is building galaxies at the peak of star formation.

The circumgalactic medium in Lyman α: a new constraint on galactic outflow models

Galactic outflows are critical to our understanding of galaxy formation and evolution. However the details of the underlying feedback process remain unclear. We compare Ly$\alpha$ observations of the circumgalactic medium (CGM) of Lyman Break Galaxies (LBGs) with mock observations of their simulated CGM. We use cosmological hydrodynamical `zoom-in' simulations of an LBG which contains strong, momentum-driven galactic outflows. Simulation snapshots at $z=2.2$ and $z=2.65$ are used, corresponding to the available observational data. The simulation is post-processed with the radiative transfer code \textsc{crash} to account for the impact of ionising photons on hydrogen gas surrounding the simulated LBG. We generate mock absorption line maps for comparison with data derived from observed close galaxy-galaxy pairs. We perform calculations of Ly$\alpha$ photons scattering through the CGM with our newly developed Monte-Carlo code \textsc{slaf}, and compare to observations of diffuse Ly$\alpha$ halos around LBGs. Our fiducial galactic outflow model comes closer to reproducing currently observed characteristics of the CGM in Ly$\alpha$ than a reference inefficient feedback model used for comparison. Nevertheless, our fiducial model still struggles to reproduce the observed data of the inner CGM (at impact parameter $b<30$kpc). Our results suggest that galactic outflows affect Ly$\alpha$ absorption and emission around galaxies mostly at impact parameters $b<50$ kpc, while cold accretion flows dominate at larger distances. We discuss the implications of this result, and underline the potential constraining power of CGM observations - in emission and absorption - on galactic outflow models.

Observational signatures of a warped disk associated with cold-flow accretion

We present MUSE observations of the field of the quasar Q0152$-$020 whose spectrum shows a Lyman limit system (LLS) at redshift $z_{\rm abs} = 0.38$, with a metallicity Z $\gtrsim 0.06$ Z$_\odot$. The low ionization metal lines associated with the LLS present two narrow distinct absorption components with a velocity separation of 26 km ${\rm s}^{-1}$. We detect six galaxies within 600 km ${\rm s}^{-1}$ from the absorption redshift; their projected distances from the quasar sightline range from 60 to 200 kpc. The optical spectra of five of these galaxies exhibit prominent nebular emission lines, from which we deduce extinction-corrected star formation rates in the range SFR = 0.06-1.3 M$_\odot$~yr$^{-1}$, and metallicities between 0.2 Z$_\odot$ and Z$_\odot$. The sixth galaxy is only detected in the stellar continuum. By combining our data with archival Keck/HIRES spectroscopy of the quasar and HST/WFPC2 imaging of the field, we can relate absorption line and galaxy kinematics; we conclude that the LLS is most likely associated with the galaxy closest to the quasar sight-line (galaxy "a"). Our morphokinematic analysis of galaxy "a" combined with the absorption line kinematics supports the interpretation that one of the absorption components originates from an extension of the stellar disk of galaxy "a", while the other component may arise in accreting gas in a warped disk with specific angular momentum $\sim 3$ times larger than the specific angular momentum of the galaxy halo. Such warped disks are common features in hydrodynamical simulations of cold-flow accretion onto galaxies; the data presented here provide observational evidence in favour of this scenario.

The magnetic prandtl number on structure of hot and cold accretion flows

The aim of this work is to investigate the effect of the presence of a magnetic Prandtl number on the structure of an accretion flow with a bipolar outflow by focusing on the density structure. Two cold and hot classes are considered for accretion flows. According to the self-similar assumptions in the radial direction and boundary conditions as well, we solve the MHD equations along the θ-direction to obtain the density structure. In addition, we consider the results in two gas-pressure-dominated and radiation-pressure-dominated regions. The obtained results show that the existence of a magnetic prandtl number may lead to bump formation in hot accretion flows, which may have consequences for planet formation. Furthermore, some discontinuations in the density structure are seen at some regions resulting in the production of a gap in the case of cold accretion flows. The results of this work may be useful in the consideration of the Rossby wave instability in both classes of accretion flows.

A NEWLY FORMING COLD FLOW PROTOGALACTIC DISK, A SIGNATURE OF COLD ACCRETION FROM THE COSMIC WEB

ABSTRACT How galaxies form from, and are fueled by, gas from the intergalactic medium (IGM) remains one of the major unsolved problems in galaxy formation. While the classical Cold Dark Matter paradigm posits galaxies forming from cooling virialized gas, recent theory and numerical simulations have highlighted the importance of cold accretion flows—relatively cool (T ∼ few × 104 K) unshocked gas streaming along filaments into dark matter halos, including hot, massive, high-redshift halos. These flows are thought to deposit gas and angular momentum into the circumgalactic medium resulting in disk- or ring-like structures, eventually coalescing into galaxies forming at filamentary intersections. We earlier reported a bright, Lyα emitting filament near the QSO HS1549+19 at redshift z = 2.843 discovered with the Palomar Cosmic Web Imager. We now report that the bright part of this filament is an enormous (R &gt; 100 kpc) rotating structure of hydrogen gas with a disk-like velocity profile consistent with a 4 × 1012 M ⊙ halo. The orbital time of the outer part of the what we term a “protodisk” is comparable to the virialization time and the age of the universe at this redshift. We propose that this protodisk can only have recently formed from cold gas flowing directly from the cosmic web.

Circumgalactic gas absorption in extremely metal-poor dwarf dalaxies

AbstractAccretion of metal-poor gas via cold accretion flows has been recently proposed as a means to trigger/sustain star formation in extremely metal-poor dwarf galaxies (XMPs), a scenario in agreement with theoretical predictions. We report on the tentative detection of CaII absorption used to trace the conditions of the gas clouds in the halo of the XMP UGCA 20.

A giant protogalactic disk linked to the cosmic web.

The specifics of how galaxies form from, and are fuelled by, gas from the intergalactic medium remain uncertain. Hydrodynamic simulations suggest that 'cold accretion flows'--relatively cool (temperatures of the order of 10(4) kelvin), unshocked gas streaming along filaments of the cosmic web into dark-matter halos--are important. These flows are thought to deposit gas and angular momentum into the circumgalactic medium, creating disk- or ring-like structures that eventually coalesce into galaxies that form at filamentary intersections. Recently, a large and luminous filament, consistent with such a cold accretion flow, was discovered near the quasi-stellar object QSO UM287 at redshift 2.279 using narrow-band imaging. Unfortunately, imaging is not sufficient to constrain the physical characteristics of the filament, to determine its kinematics, to explain how it is linked to nearby sources, or to account for its unusual brightness, more than a factor of ten above what is expected for a filament. Here we report a two-dimensional spectroscopic investigation of the emitting structure. We find that the brightest emission region is an extended rotating hydrogen disk with a velocity profile that is characteristic of gas in a dark-matter halo with a mass of 10(13) solar masses. This giant protogalactic disk appears to be connected to a quiescent filament that may extend beyond the virial radius of the halo. The geometry is strongly suggestive of a cold accretion flow.

Chaotic cold accretion on to black holes in rotating atmospheres

Chaotic cold accretion (CCA) profoundly differs from classic black hole accretion models. Using 3D high-resolution simulations, we probe the impact of rotation on the hot and cold accretion flow in a typical massive galaxy. In the hot mode, with or without turbulence, the pressure-dominated flow forms a geometrically thick rotational barrier, suppressing the accretion rate to ~1/3 of the Bondi rate. When radiative cooling is dominant, the gas loses pressure support and quickly circularizes in a cold thin disk. In the more common state of a turbulent and heated atmosphere, CCA drives the dynamics if the gas velocity dispersion exceeds the rotational velocity, i.e., turbulent Taylor number < 1. Extended multiphase filaments condense out of the hot phase via thermal instability and rain toward the black hole, boosting the accretion rate up to 100 times the Bondi rate. Initially, turbulence broadens the angular momentum distribution of the hot gas, allowing the cold phase to condense with prograde or retrograde motion. Subsequent chaotic collisions between the cold filaments, clouds, and a clumpy variable torus promote the cancellation of angular momentum, leading to high accretion rates. The simulated sub-Eddington accretion rates cover the range inferred from AGN cavity observations. CCA predicts inner flat X-ray temperature and $r^{-1}$ density profiles, as recently discovered in M 87 and NGC 3115. The synthetic H{\alpha} images reproduce the main features of cold gas observations in massive ellipticals, as the line fluxes and the filaments versus disk morphology. Such dichotomy is key for the long-term AGN feedback cycle. As gas cools, filamentary CCA develops and boosts AGN heating; the cold mode is thus reduced and the rotating disk remains the sole cold structure. Its consumption leaves the atmosphere in hot mode with suppressed accretion and feedback, reloading the cycle.

ACTIVE GALACTIC NUCLEUS FEEDBACK IN AN ISOLATED ELLIPTICAL GALAXY: THE EFFECT OF STRONG RADIATIVE FEEDBACK IN THE KINETIC MODE

Based on two-dimensional high resolution hydrodynamic numerical simulation, we study the mechanical and radiative feedback effects from the central AGN on the cosmological evolution of an isolated elliptical galaxy. Physical processes such as star formation and supernovae are considered. The inner boundary of the simulation domain is carefully chosen so that the fiducial Bondi radius is resolved and the accretion rate of the black hole is determined self-consistently. In analogy to previous works, we assume that the specific angular momentum of the galaxy is low. It is well-known that when the accretion rates are high and low, the central AGNs will be in cold and hot accretion modes, which correspond to the radiative and kinetic feedback modes, respectively. The emitted spectrum from the hot accretion flows is harder than that from the cold accretion flows, which could result in a higher Compton temperature accompanied by a more efficient radiative heating, according to previous theoretical works. Such a difference of the Compton temperature between the two feedback modes, the focus of this study, has been neglected in previous works. Significant differences in the kinetic feedback mode are found as a result of the stronger Compton heating and accretion becomes more chaotic. More importantly, if we constrain models to correctly predict black hole growth and AGN duty cycle after cosmological evolution, we find that the favored model parameters are constrained: mechanical feedback efficiency diminishes with decreasing luminosity (the maximum efficiency being $\simeq 10^{-3.5}$) and X-ray Compton temperature increases with decreasing luminosity, although models with fixed mechanical efficiency and Compton temperature can be found that are satisfactory as well. We conclude that radiative feedback in the kinetic mode is much more important than previously thought.

INTERGALACTIC MEDIUM EMISSION OBSERVATIONS WITH THE COSMIC WEB IMAGER. I. THE CIRCUM-QSO MEDIUM OF QSO 1549+19, AND EVIDENCE FOR A FILAMENTARY GAS INFLOW

The Palomar Cosmic Web Imager (PCWI), an integral field spectrograph designed to detect and map low surface brightness emission, has obtained imaging spectroscopic maps of Ly-alpha from the circum-QSO medium (CQM) of QSO HS1549+19 at redshift of 2.843. Extensive extended emission is detected from the CQM, consistent with fluorescent and pumped Ly-alpha produced by the ionizing and Ly-alpha continuum of the QSO. Many features present in PCWI spectral images match those detected in narrow-band images. Filamentary structures with narrow line profiles are detected in several cases as long as 250-400 kpc. One of these is centered at a velocity redshifted with respect to the systemic velocity, and displays a spatially collimated and kinematically cold line profile increasing in velocity width approaching the QSO. This suggests that the filament gas is infalling onto the QSO, perhaps in a cold accretion flow. Because of the strong ionizing flux, the neutral column density is low, typically N(HI) is roughly 10E12-10E15/square-cm, and the line center optical depth is also low (typically tau0 is less than 10), insufficient to display well-separated double peak emission characteristic of higher line optical depths. With a simple ionization and cloud model we can very roughly estimate the total gas mass (log M(gas) equal to 12.5 +/- 0.5) and the total mass (log M(tot) equal to 13.3+/- 0.5). We can also calculate a kinematic mass from the total line profile (2x10E13 M(sun)), which agrees with the mass estimated from the gas emission. The intensity-binned spectrum of the CQM shows a progression in kinematic properties consistent with heirarchical structure formation.

Hot Accretion Flows Around Black Holes

Black hole accretion flows can be divided into two broad classes: cold and hot. Whereas cold accretion flows consist of cool optically thick gas and are found at relatively high mass accretion rates, hot accretion flows, the topic of this review, are virially hot and optically thin, and occur at lower mass accretion rates. They are described by accretion solutions such as the advection-dominated accretion flow and luminous hot accretion flow. Because of energy advection, the radiative efficiency of these flows is in general lower than that of a standard thin accretion disk. Moreover, the efficiency decreases with decreasing mass accretion rate. Observations show that hot accretion flows are associated with jets. In addition, theoretical arguments suggest that hot flows should produce strong winds. Hot accretion flows are believed to be present in low-luminosity active galactic nuclei and in black hole X-ray binaries in the hard and quiescent states. The prototype is Sgr A*, the ultralow-luminosity supermassive black hole at our Galactic center. The jet, wind, and radiation from a supermassive black hole with a hot accretion flow can interact with the external interstellar medium and modify the evolution of the host galaxy.

DISSECTION OF Hα EMITTERS : LOW-zANALOGS OFz&gt; 4 STAR-FORMING GALAXIES

Strong Halpha Emitters (HAEs) dominate the z~4 Lyman-break galaxy population. We have identified local analogs of these HAEs using the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). At z<0.4, only 0.04% of galaxies are classified as HAEs with Halpha equivalent widths (>500A) comparable to that of z~4 HAEs. Local HAEs have lower stellar mass and lower ultraviolet (UV) luminosity than z~4 HAEs, yet the Halpha-to-UV luminosity ratio as well as their specific star-formation rate is consistent with that of z~4 HAEs indicating that they are scaled down versions of high-z star-forming galaxies. Compared to the previously studied local analogs of z~2 Lyman break galaxies selected using rest-frame UV, local HAEs show similar UV luminosity surface density, weaker Dn(4000) breaks, lower metallicity and lower stellar mass. This supports the idea that local HAEs are less evolved galaxies than the traditional Lyman break analogs. We are not able to constrain if the star-formation history in local HAEs is powered by mergers or by cosmological cold flow accretion. However, in the stacked spectrum, local HAEs show a strong HeII4686 emission line suggesting a population of young (<10Myr), hot, massive stars similar to that seen in some Wolf-Rayet galaxies. Low [NII]/[OIII] line flux ratios imply that local HAEs are inconsistent with being systems that host bright AGN. Instead, it is highly likely that local HAEs are galaxies with an elevated ionization parameter, either due to a high electron density or large escape fraction of hydrogen ionizing photons as in the case for Wolf-Rayet galaxies.

Supermassive black hole formation by cold accretion shocks in the first galaxies

We propose a new scenario for supermassive star (SMS;>10^5Msun) formation in shocked regions of colliding cold accretion flows near the centers of first galaxies. Recent numerical simulations indicate that assembly of a typical first galaxy with virial temperature (~10^4K) proceeds via cold and dense flows penetrating deep to the center, where the supersonic streams collide each other to develop a hot and dense (~10^4K, ~10^3/cc) shocked gas. The post-shock layer first cools by efficient Ly alpha emission and contracts isobarically until 8000K. Whether the layer continues the isobaric contraction depends on the density at this moment: if the density is high enough for collisionally exciting H2 rovibrational levels (>10^4/cc), enhanced H2 collisional dissociation suppresses the gas to cool further. In this case, the layer fragments into massive (>10^5Msun) clouds, which collapse isothermally (~8000K) by the Ly alpha cooling without subsequent fragmentation. As an outcome, SMSs are expected to form and evolve eventually to seeds of supermassive black holes (SMBH). By calculating thermal evolution of the post-shock gas, we delimit the range of post-shock conditions for the SMS formation, which can be expressed as: T>6000K/(n/10^4/cc) for n<10^4/cc and T>5000-6000K for n>10^4/cc, depending somewhat on initial ionization degree. We found that metal enrichment does not affect the above condition for metallicity below 10^-3Zsun if metals are in the gas phase, while condensation of several percent of metals into dust decreases this critical value of metallicity by an order of magnitude. Unlike the previously proposed scenario for SMS formation, which postulates extremely strong ultraviolet radiation to quench H2 cooling, our scenario naturally explains the SMBH seed formation in the assembly process of the first galaxies, even without such a strong radiation.

Understanding the observed evolution of the galaxy luminosity function from z = 6–10 in the context of hierarchical structure formation

Recent observations of the Lyman-break galaxy (LBG) luminosity function (LF) from z ≈ 6–10 show a steep decline in abundance with increasing redshift. However, the LF is a convolution of the mass function of dark matter halos (HMF) — which also declines sharply over this redshift range — and the galaxy-formation physics that maps halo mass to galaxy luminosity. We consider the strong observed evolution in the LF from z ≈ 6–10 in this context and determine whether it can be explained solely by the behavior of the HMF. From z ≈ 6–8, we find a residual change in the physics of galaxy formation corresponding to a ∼ 0.5 dex increase in the average luminosity of a halo of fixed mass. On the other hand, our analysis of recent LF measurements at z ≈ 10 shows that the paucity of detected galaxies is consistent with almost no change in the average luminosity at fixed halo mass from z ≈ 8. The LF slope also constrains the variation about this mean such that the luminosity of galaxies hosted by halos of the same mass are all within about an order-of-magnitude of each other. We show that these results are well-described by a simple model of galaxy formation in which cold-flow accretion is balanced by star formation and momentum-driven outflows. If galaxy formation proceeds in halos with masses down to 108M⊙, then such a model predicts that LBGs at z ≈ 10 should be able to maintain an ionized intergalactic medium as long as the ratio of the clumping factor to the ionizing escape fraction is C/fesc≲10.

Cold accretion flows and the nature of high column density H i absorption at redshift 3

Simulations predict that galaxies grow primarily through the accretion of gas that has not gone through an accretion shock near the virial radius and that this cold gas flows towards the central galaxy along dense filaments and streams. There is, however, little observational evidence for the existence of these cold flows. We use a large, cosmological, hydrodynamical simulation that has been post-processed with radiative transfer to study the contribution of cold flows to the observed z=3 column density distribution of neutral hydrogen, which our simulation reproduces. We find that nearly all of the HI absorption arises in gas that has remained colder than 10^5.5 K, at least while it was extragalactic. In addition, the majority of the HI is rapidly falling towards a nearby galaxy, with non-negligible contributions from outflowing and static gas. Above a column density of N_HI = 10^17 cm^-2, most of the absorbers reside inside haloes, but the interstellar medium only dominates for N_HI > 10^21 cm^-2. Haloes with total mass below 10^10 Msun dominate the absorption for 10^17<N_HI < 10^21 cm^-2, but the average halo mass increases sharply for higher column densities. Although very little of the HI in absorbers with N_HI <~ 10^20 cm^-2 resides inside galaxies, systems with N_HI > 10^17 cm^-2 are closely related to star formation: most of their HI either will become part of the interstellar medium before z=2 or has been ejected from a galaxy at z>3. Cold accretion flows are critical for the success of our simulation in reproducing the observed rate of incidence of damped Lyman-alpha and particularly that of Lyman limit systems. We therefore conclude that cold accretion flows exist and have already been detected in the form of high column density HI absorbers.