UKIDSS Ultra Deep Survey Field Research Articles

Constraints on the Faint End of the Galaxy Stellar Mass Function at z ≃ 4–8 from Deep JWST Data

We analyze a sample of 3300 galaxies between redshifts z ≃ 3.5 and z ≃ 8.5 selected from James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) images in the Hubble Ultra Deep Field and UKIDSS Ultra Deep Survey field, including objects with stellar masses as low as ≃108 M ⊙ up to z ≃ 8. The depth and wavelength coverage of the JWST data allows us, for the first time, to derive robust stellar masses for such high-z, low stellar mass galaxies on an individual basis. We compute the galaxy stellar mass function, after complementing our sample with ancillary data from CANDELS to constrain the GMSF at high stellar masses ( M>M* ). Our results show a steepening of the low stellar mass end slope (α) with redshift, with α = −1.61 ± 0.05 at z ≃ 4 and α = −1.98 ± 0.14 at z ≃ 7. We also observe an evolution of the normalization ϕ * from z ≃ 7 to z ≃ 4, with ϕz≃4*/ϕz≃7*=130−50+210 . Our study incorporates a novel method for the estimation of the Eddington bias, which takes into account its possible dependence both on stellar mass and redshift, while allowing for skewness in the error distribution. We finally compute the resulting cosmic stellar mass density and find a flatter evolution with redshift than previous studies.

An ALMA survey of the SCUBA-2 Cosmology Legacy Survey UKIDSS/UDS field: halo masses for submillimetre galaxies

ABSTRACT We present an analysis of the spatial clustering of a large sample of high-resolution, interferometically identified, submillimetre galaxies (SMGs). We measure the projected cross-correlation function of ∼350 SMGs in the UKIDSS Ultra Deep-Survey Field across a redshift range of z = 1.5–3 utilizing a method that incorporates the uncertainties in the redshift measurements for both the SMGs and cross-correlated galaxies through sampling their full probability distribution functions. By measuring the absolute linear bias of the SMGs, we derive halo masses of $\log _{10}(M_{\rm halo}[{h^{-1}\, \rm M_{\odot }}])$ ∼ 12.8 with no evidence of evolution in the halo masses with redshift, contrary to some previous work. From considering models of halo mass growth rates, we predict that the SMGs will reside in haloes of mass $\log _{10}(M_{\rm halo}[{h^{-1}\, \rm M_{\odot }}])$ ∼ 13.2 at z = 0, consistent with the expectation that the majority of z = 1.5–3 SMGs will evolve into present-day spheroidal galaxies. Finally, comparing to models of stellar-to-halo mass ratios, we show that SMGs may correspond to systems that are maximally efficient at converting their gas reservoirs into stars. We compare them to a simple model for gas cooling in haloes that suggests that the unique properties of the SMG population, including their high levels of star formation and their redshift distribution, are a result of the SMGs being the most massive galaxies that are still able to accrete cool gas from their surrounding intragalactic medium.

High-velocity outflows in massive post-starburst galaxies at z > 1

ABSTRACT We investigate the prevalence of galactic-scale outflows in post-starburst (PSB) galaxies at high redshift (1 < z < 1.4), using the deep optical spectra available in the UKIDSS Ultra Deep Survey (UDS). We use a sample of ∼40 spectroscopically confirmed PSBs, recently identified in the UDS field, and perform a stacking analysis in order to analyse the structure of strong interstellar absorption features such as Mg ii (λ2800 Å). We find that for massive ($M_* \gt 10^{10}\rm \, M_{\odot }$) PSBs at z > 1, there is clear evidence for a strong blue-shifted component to the Mg ii absorption feature, indicative of high-velocity outflows ($v_{\rm out}\sim 1150\pm 160\rm \, km\, s^{-1}$) in the interstellar medium. We conclude that such outflows are typical in massive PSBs at this epoch, and potentially represent the residual signature of a feedback process that quenched these galaxies. Using full spectral fitting, we also obtain a typical stellar velocity dispersion σ* for these PSBs of $\sim 200\rm \, km\, s^{-1}$, which confirms they are intrinsically massive in nature (dynamical mass $M_{\rm d}\sim 10^{11}\rm \, M_{\odot }$). Given that these high-z PSBs are also exceptionally compact (re ∼ 1–$2\rm \, kpc$) and spheroidal (Sérsic index n ∼ 3), we propose that the outflowing winds may have been launched during a recent compaction event (e.g. major merger or disc collapse) that triggered either a centralized starburst or active galactic nuclei (AGN) activity. Finally, we find no evidence for AGN signatures in the optical spectra of these PSBs, suggesting they were either quenched by stellar feedback from the starburst itself, or that if AGN feedback is responsible, the AGN episode that triggered quenching does not linger into the post-starburst phase.

The NuSTAR Extragalactic Surveys: Source Catalog and the Compton-thick Fraction in the UDS Field

Abstract We present the results and the source catalog of the NuSTAR survey in the UKIDSS Ultra Deep Survey (UDS) field, bridging the gap in depth and area between NuSTAR’s ECDFS and COSMOS surveys. The survey covers a ∼0.6 deg2 area of the field for a total observing time of ∼1.75 Ms, to a half-area depth of ∼155 ks corrected for vignetting at 3–24 keV, and reaching sensitivity limits at half-area in the full (3–24 keV), soft (3–8 keV), and hard (8–24 keV) bands of 2.2 × 10−14 erg cm−2 s−1, 1.0 × 10−14 erg cm−2 s−1, and 2.7 × 10−14 erg cm−2 s−1, respectively. A total of 67 sources are detected in at least one of the three bands, 56 of which have a robust optical redshift with a median of 〈 z 〉 ∼ 1.1 . Through a broadband (0.5–24 keV) spectral analysis of the whole sample combined with the NuSTAR hardness ratios, we compute the observed Compton-thick (CT; N H > 1024 cm−2) fraction. Taking into account the uncertainties on each N H measurement, the final number of CT sources is 6.8 ± 1.2. This corresponds to an observed CT fraction of 11.5% ± 2.0%, providing a robust lower limit to the intrinsic fraction of CT active galactic nuclei and placing constraints on cosmic X-ray background synthesis models.

CANDELS: Elevated Black Hole Growth in the Progenitors of Compact Quiescent Galaxies at z ∼ 2

Abstract We examine the fraction of massive ( ) compact star-forming galaxies (cSFGs) that host an active galactic nucleus (AGN) at . These cSFGs are likely the direct progenitors of the compact quiescent galaxies observed at this epoch, which are the first population of passive galaxies to appear in large numbers in the early Universe. We identify cSFGs that host an AGN using a combination of Hubble WFC3 imaging and Chandra X-ray observations in four fields: the Chandra Deep Fields, the Extended Groth Strip, and the UKIDSS Ultra Deep Survey field. We find that (65/166) of cSFGs at host an X-ray detected AGN. This fraction is 3.2 times higher than the incidence of AGN in extended star-forming galaxies with similar masses at these redshifts. This difference is significant at the level. Our results are consistent with models in which cSFGs are formed through a dissipative contraction that triggers a compact starburst and concurrent growth of the central black hole. We also discuss our findings in the context of cosmological galaxy evolution simulations that require feedback energy to rapidly quench cSFGs. We show that the AGN fraction peaks precisely where energy injection is needed to reproduce the decline in the number density of cSFGs with redshift. Our results suggest that the first abundant population of massive quenched galaxies emerged directly following a phase of elevated supermassive black hole growth and further hints at a possible connection between AGN and the rapid quenching of star formation in these galaxies.

Massive post-starburst galaxies at z > 1 are compact proto-spheroids

We investigate the relationship between the quenching of star formation and the structural transformation of massive galaxies, using a large sample of photometrically selected post-starburst galaxies in the UKIDSS Ultra-Deep Survey field. We find that post-starburst galaxies at high redshift (z > 1) show high Sérsic indices, significantly higher than those of active star-forming galaxies, but with a distribution that is indistinguishable from the old quiescent population. We conclude that the morphological transformation occurs before (or during) the quenching of star formation. Recently quenched galaxies are also the most compact; we find evidence that massive post-starburst galaxies (M* > 1010.5 M⊙) at high redshift (z > 1) are on average smaller than comparable quiescent galaxies at the same epoch. Our findings are consistent with a scenario in which massive passive galaxies are formed from three distinct phases: (1) gas-rich dissipative collapse to very high densities, forming the proto-spheroid, (2) rapid quenching of star formation to create the ‘red nugget’ with post-starburst features and (3) a gradual growth in size as the population ages, perhaps as a result of minor mergers.

The SCUBA-2 Cosmology Legacy Survey: Multi-wavelength Properties of ALMA-identified Submillimeter Galaxies in UKIDSS UDS

Abstract We present a multi-wavelength analysis of 52 submillimeter galaxies (SMGs), identified using ALMA 870 μm continuum imaging in a pilot program to precisely locate bright SCUBA-2-selected submillimeter sources in the UKIDSS Ultra Deep Survey (UDS) field. Using the available deep (especially near-infrared) panoramic imaging of the UDS field at optical-to-radio wavelengths we characterize key properties of the SMG population. The median photometric redshift of the bright ALMA/SCUBA-2 UDS (AS2UDS) SMGs that are detected in a sufficient number of wavebands to derive a robust photometric redshift is z = 2.65 ± 0.13. However, similar to previous studies, 27% of the SMGs are too faint at optical-to-near-infrared wavelengths to derive a reliable photometric redshift. Assuming that these SMGs lie at z ≳ 3 raises the median redshift of the full sample to z = 2.9 ± 0.2. A subset of 23 unlensed, bright AS2UDS SMGs have sizes measured from resolved imaging of their rest-frame far-infrared emission. We show that the extent and luminosity of the far-infrared emission are consistent with the dust emission arising from regions that are, on average, optically thick at a wavelength of (1σ dispersion of 55–90 μm). Using the dust masses derived from our optically thick spectral energy distribution models, we determine that these galaxies have a median hydrogen column density of N H = 9.8 × 1023 cm−2, or a corresponding median V-band obscuration of A v = 540 mag, averaged along the line of sight to the source of their rest-frame ∼200 μm emission. We discuss the implications of this extreme attenuation by dust for the multi-wavelength study of dusty starbursts and reddening-sensitive tracers of star formation.

The evolution of galaxies at constant number density: a less biased view of star formation, quenching, and structural formation

Due to significant galaxy contamination and impurity in stellar mass selected samples (up to 95% from z=0-3), we examine the star formation history, quenching time-scales, and structural evolution of galaxies using a constant number density selection with data from the UKIDSS Ultra-Deep Survey field. Using this methodology we investigate the evolution of galaxies at a variety of number densities from $z=0-3$. We find that samples chosen at number densities ranging from $3\times10^{-4}$ to 10$^{-5}$ galaxies Mpc$^{-3}$ (corresponding to $z\sim0.5$ stellar masses of M$_{*}= 10^{10.95-11.6}$ M$_{0}$) have a star forming blue fraction of $\sim50$\% at $z\sim2.5$, which evolves to a nearly $100$\% quenched red and dead population by $z\sim 1$. We also see evidence for number density downsizing, such that the galaxies selected at the lowest densities (highest masses) become a homogeneous red population before those at higher number densities. Examining the evolution of the colours for these systems furthermore shows that the formation redshift of galaxies selected at these number densities is $z_{\rm form}>3$. The structural evolution through size and Sersic index fits reveal that while there remains evolution in terms of galaxies becoming larger and more concentrated in stellar mass at lower redshifts, the magnitude of the change is significantly smaller than for a mass selected sample. We also find that changes in size and structure continues at $z < 1$, and is coupled strongly to passivity evolution. We conclude that galaxy structure is driving the quenching of galaxies, such that galaxies become concentrated before they become passive.

Evolution of star formation in the UKIDSS Ultra Deep Survey Field – II. Star formation as a function of stellar mass betweenz = 1.46 and 0.63

We present new results on the evolution of the cosmic star formation rate as a function of stellar mass in the SXDS-UDS field. We make use of narrow-band selected emission line galaxies in four redshift slices between z = 1.46 and z = 0.63, and compute stellar masses by fitting a series of templates to recreate each galaxy's star formation history. We determine mass-binned luminosity functions in each redshift slice, and derive the star formation rate density (rhoSFR) as a function of mass using the [OIII] or [OII] emission lines. We calculate dust extinction and metallicity as a function of stellar mass, and investigate the effect of these corrections on the shape of the overall rhoSFR(M). We find that both these corrections are crucial for determining the shape of the rhoSFR(M), and its evolution with redshift. The fully corrected rhoSFR(M) is a relatively flat distribution, with the normalisation moving towards lower values of rhoSFR with increasing cosmic time/decreasing redshift, and requiring star formation to be truncated across all masses studied here. The peak of rhoSFR(M) is found in the 10^10.5<Msun<10^11.0 mass bin at z = 1.46. In the lower redshift slices the location of the peak is less certain, however low mass galaxies in the range 10^7.0<Msun<10^8.0 play an important part in the overall rhoSFR(M) out to at least z ~ 1.2.

Evidence for a correlation between the sizes of quiescent galaxies and local environment to z ∼ 2

We present evidence for a strong relationship between galaxy size and environment for the quiescent population in the redshift range 1 < z < 2. Environments were measured using projected galaxy overdensities on a scale of 400 kpc, as determined from ~ 96,000 K-band selected galaxies from the UKIDSS Ultra Deep Survey (UDS). Sizes were determined from ground-based K-band imaging, calibrated using space-based CANDELS HST observations in the centre of the UDS field, with photometric redshifts and stellar masses derived from 11-band photometric fitting. From the resulting size-mass relation, we confirm that quiescent galaxies at a given stellar mass were typically ~ 50 % smaller at z ~ 1.4 compared to the present day. At a given epoch, however, we find that passive galaxies in denser environments are on average significantly larger at a given stellar mass. The most massive quiescent galaxies (M_stellar > 2 x 10^11 M_sun) at z > 1 are typically 50 % larger in the highest density environments compared to those in the lowest density environments. Using Monte Carlo simulations, we reject the null hypothesis that the size-mass relation is independent of environment at a significance > 4.8 sigma for the redshift range 1 < z < 2. In contrast, the evidence for a relationship between size and environment is much weaker for star-forming galaxies.

The prevalence of AGN feedback in massive galaxies at z ≈ 1

We use the optical--infrared imaging in the UKIDSS Ultra Deep Survey field, in combination with the new deep radio map of Arumugam et al., to calculate the distribution of radio luminosities among galaxies as a function of stellar mass in two redshift bins across the interval 0.4<z<1.2. This is done with the use of a new Bayesian method to classify stars and galaxies in surveys with multi-band photometry, and to derive photometric redshifts and stellar masses for those galaxies. We compare the distribution to that observed locally and find agreement if we consider only objects believed to be weak-lined radio-loud galaxies. Since the local distribution is believed to be the result of an energy balance between radiative cooling of the gaseous halo and mechanical AGN heating, we infer that this balance was also present as long ago as z~1. This supports the existence of a direct link between the presence of a low-luminosity ('hot-mode') radio-loud active galactic nucleus and the absence of ongoing star formation.

Evolution of star formation in the UKIDSS Ultra Deep Survey field – I. Luminosity functions and cosmic star formation rate out to z = 1.6

We present new results on the cosmic star formation history in the SXDS-UDS field out to z=1.6. We compile narrow-band data from the Subaru Telescope and the Visible and Infrared Survey Telescope for Astronomy (VISTA) in conjunction with broad-band data from the SXDS and UDS, to make a selection of 5725 emission-line galaxies in 12 redshift slices, spanning 10 Gyr of cosmic time. We determine photometric redshifts for the sample using 11-band photometry, and use a spectroscopically confirmed subset to fine tune the resultant redshift distribution. We use the maximum-likelihood technique to determine luminosity functions in each redshift slice and model the selection effects inherent in any narrow-band selection statistically, to obviate the retrospective corrections ordinarily required. The deep narrow-band data are sensitive to very low star formation rates (SFRs), and allow an accurate evaluation of the faint end slope of the Schechter function, alpha. We find that alpha is particularly sensitive to the assumed faintest broadband magnitude of a galaxy capable of hosting an emission line, and propose that this limit should be empirically motivated. For this analysis we base our threshold on the limiting observed equivalent widths of emission lines in the local Universe. We compute the characteristic SFR of galaxies in each redshift slice, and the integrated SFR density, rho_{SFR}. We find our results to be in good agreement with the literature and parametrize the evolution of the SFR density as rho_{SFR} proportional to (1 + z)^{4.58} confirming a steep decline in star formation activity since z = 1.6.

A pilot survey for KX QSOs in the UKIDSS Ultra Deep Survey Field

We have undertaken a pilot survey for faint quasi-stellar objects (QSOs) in the UKIRT Infrared Deep Survey (UKIDSS) Ultra Deep Survey (UDS) Field using the KX selection technique. These observations exploit the very deep near-infrared and optical imaging of this field from United Kingdom Infrared Telescope (UKIRT) and Subaru to select candidate QSOs based on their VJK colours and morphologies. We determined redshifts for 426 candidates using the AAOmega spectrograph on the Anglo-Australian Telescope in service time. We identify 17 QSOs (M B ≤ -23) in this pilot survey at z = 1.57-3.29. We combine our sample with an X-ray-selected sample of QSOs in the same field (a large fraction of which also comply with our KX selection) to constrain the surface density of QSOs with K ≤ 20, deriving limits on the likely surface density of 85-150 deg -2 . We use the good image quality available from our near-infrared imaging to detect a spatially extended component of the QSO light which probably represents the host galaxies. We also use our sample to investigate routes to improve the selection of KX QSOs at faint limits in the face of the significant contamination by compact, foreground galaxies. The brightest examples from our combined QSO sample will be used in conjunction with a large Very Large Telescope VIMOS spectroscopic survey of high-redshift galaxies in this region to study the structures inhabited by gas, galaxies and growing supermassive black holes at high redshifts in the UKIDSS UDS.

The evolution of the near-infrared galaxy luminosity function and colour bimodality up to z ≃ 2 from the UKIDSS Ultra Deep Survey Early Data Release

We present new results on the cosmological evolution of the near-infrared (near-IR) galaxy luminosity function (LF), derived from the analysis of a new sample of ∼22 000 KAB≤ 22.5 galaxies selected over an area of 0.6 deg2 from the Early Data Release of the UKIDSS Ultra Deep Survey (UDS). Our study has exploited the multiwavelength coverage of the UDS field provided by the new UKIDSS WFCAM K- and J-band imaging, the Subaru/XMM–Newton Deep Survey and the Spitzer Wide-Area Infrared Extragalactic survey. The unique combination of large area and depth provided by this new survey minimizes the complicating effect of cosmic variance and has allowed us, for the first time, to trace the evolution of the brightest sources out to z≃ 2 with good statistical accuracy. In agreement with previous studies, we find that the characteristic luminosity of the near-IR LF brightens by ≃1 mag between z= 0 and z≃ 2, while the total density decreases by a factor of ≃2. Using the rest-frame (U−B) colour to split the sample into red and blue galaxies, we confirm the classic luminosity-dependent colour bimodality at z≲ 1. However, the strength of the colour bimodality is found to be a decreasing function of redshift, and seems to disappear by z≳ 1.5. Due to the large size of our sample, we are able to investigate the differing cosmological evolution of the red and blue galaxy populations. It is found that the space density of the brightest red galaxies (MK≤− 23) stays approximately constant with redshift, and that these sources dominate the bright end of the LF at redshifts z≲ 1. In contrast, the brightening of the characteristic luminosity and mild decrease in space density displayed by the blue galaxy population leads them to dominate the bright end of the LF at redshifts