UV Spectral Slope Research Articles

Simulated Solar-wind-induced Space Weathering of Olivine Powders: Spectral Alterations in the Ultraviolet, Visible, and Near-infrared

Bombardment by solar wind ions is one of the main drivers of space weathering on airless bodies. Here, we simulate the solar-wind-driven spectral alteration of loosely packed olivine powders by irradiation with 1.2 keV helium ions (He+). We measured the reflectance spectra of the olivine powder in the ultraviolet–visible–near-infrared (UV–Vis–NIR) wavelength range (0.2–2 μm) as a function of ion fluence. In the Vis–NIR range, we observed spectral darkening, absorption band shallowing, and spectral reddening, in agreement with lunar-style space weathering and previous laboratory studies. In the UV–Vis, spectral darkening was also observed. However, a spectral bluing took place at wavelengths below 400 nm. As the simulated space weathering progressed, the spectral slopes shifted from steep-UV/shallow-NIR slopes to shallow-UV/steep-NIR slopes. Moreover, the change in the UV slope was almost 10 times larger than in the NIR, supporting the hypothesis that the UV spectral slope could be an earlier indicator of space weathering.

Toward Unveiling Cosmic Reionization: The Ionizing Photon Production Efficiency (ξ ion) of Low-mass Hα Emitters at z ∼ 2.3

We investigate the galaxy properties of ∼400 low-mass (<109 M ⊙) Hα emitters (HAEs) at z ∼ 2.3 in the ZFOURGE survey. The selection of these HAEs is based on the excess in the observed K s broadband flux compared to the stellar continuum estimated from the best-fit spectral energy distribution. These low-mass HAEs have elevated SFR(Hα) above the star formation main sequence, making them potential analogs of the galaxies that reionized the Universe during the Epoch of Reionization. The ionizing photon production efficiencies (ξ ion) of the low-mass HAEs have a median value of log(ξion/erg−1Hz)=25.24−0.13+0.10(25.35−0.15+0.12) , assuming the Calzetti (SMC) curve for the stellar continuum dust correction. This value is higher than that of main-sequence galaxies by ∼0.2 dex at similar redshift, indicating that the low-mass HAEs are more efficient in producing ionizing photons. Our results also consolidate the trend of increasing ξ ion with redshift, but reveal a “downsizing” relationship between ξ ion and stellar mass (M ⊙) with increasing redshift. We further explore the dependence of ξ ion on other galaxy properties, such as the UV spectral slope (β UV), the UV magnitude (M UV), and the equivalent widths of Hα and [O iii] emission lines. Galaxies with bluer UV slopes, fainter UV luminosities, and higher equivalent widths exhibit elevated ξ ion by a factor of ∼2 compared to the median ξ ion of our sample. JWST data will provide an opportunity to extend our method and further investigate the properties of low-mass galaxies at high redshifts.

A Strong He ii λ1640 Emitter with an Extremely Blue UV Spectral Slope at z = 8.16: Presence of Population III Stars?

Cosmic hydrogen reionization and cosmic production of the first metals are major phase transitions of the Universe occurring during the first billion years after the Big Bang; however, these are still underexplored observationally. Using the JWST/NIRSpec prism spectroscopy, we report the discovery of a sub-L * galaxy at z spec = 8.1623 ± 0.0007, dubbed RX J2129–z8He II, via the detection of a series of strong rest-frame UV/optical nebular emission lines and the clear Lyman break. RX J2129–z8He II shows a pronounced UV continuum with an extremely steep (i.e., blue) spectral slope of β=−2.53−0.07+0.06 , the steepest among all spectroscopically confirmed galaxies at z spec ≳ 7, in support of its very hard ionizing spectrum that could lead to a significant leakage of its ionizing flux. Therefore, RX J2129–z8He II is representative of the key galaxy population driving the cosmic reionization. More importantly, we detect a strong He II λ1640 emission line in its spectrum, one of the highest redshifts at which such a line is robustly detected. Its high rest-frame equivalent width (EW = 21 ± 4 Å) and extreme flux ratios with respect to UV metal and Balmer lines raise the possibility that part of RX J2129–z8He II’s stellar population could be Pop III (Pop III)-like. Through careful photoionization modeling, we show that the physically calibrated phenomenological models of the ionizing spectra of Pop III stars with strong mass loss can successfully reproduce the emission line flux ratios observed in RX J2129–z8He II. Assuming the Eddington limit, the total mass of the Pop III stars within this system is estimated to be 7.8 ± 1.4 × 105 M ⊙. To date, this galaxy presents the most compelling case in the early Universe where trace Pop III stars might coexist with metal-enriched populations.

Rest-frame UV Colors for Faint Galaxies at z ∼ 9–16 with the JWST NGDEEP Survey

We present measurements of the rest-frame UV spectral slope, β, for a sample of 36 faint star-forming galaxies at z ∼ 9–16 discovered in one of the deepest JWST NIRCam surveys to date, the Next Generation Deep Extragalactic Exploratory Public Survey. We use robust photometric measurements for UV-faint galaxies (down to M UV ∼ −16), originally published in Leung et al., and measure values of the UV spectral slope via photometric power-law fitting to both the observed photometry and stellar population models obtained through spectral energy distribution (SED) fitting with Bagpipes. We obtain a median and 68% confidence interval for β from photometric power-law fitting of βPL=−2.7−0.5+0.5 and from SED fitting, βSED=−2.3−0.1+0.2 for the full sample. We show that when only two to three photometric detections are available, SED fitting has a lower scatter and reduced biases than photometric power-law fitting. We quantify this bias and find that after correction the median βSED,corr=−2.5−0.2+0.2 . We measure physical properties for our galaxies with Bagpipes and find that our faint ( MUV=−18.1−0.9+0.7 ) sample is low in mass ( log[M*/M⊙]=7.7−0.5+0.5 ), fairly dust-poor ( Av=0.1−0.1+0.2 mag), and modestly young ( log[age]=7.8−0.8+0.2 yr) with a median star formation rate of log(SFR)=−0.3−0.4+0.4M⊙yr−1 . We find no strong evidence for ultrablue UV spectral slopes (β ∼ −3) within our sample, as would be expected for exotically metal-poor (Z/Z ⊙ < 10−3) stellar populations with very high Lyman continuum escape fractions. Our observations are consistent with model predictions that galaxies of these stellar masses at z ∼ 9–16 should have only modestly low metallicities (Z/Z ⊙ ∼ 0.1–0.2).

Testing He ii Emission from Wolf–Rayet Stars as a Dust Attenuation Measure in Eight Nearby Star-forming Galaxies

The ability to determine galaxy properties such as masses, ages, and star formation rates robustly is critically limited by the ability to measure dust attenuation accurately. Dust reddening is often characterized by comparing observations to models of either nebular recombination lines or the UV continuum. Here, we use a new technique to measure dust reddening by exploiting the He ii λ1640 and λ4686 emission lines originating from the stellar winds of Wolf–Rayet stars. The intrinsic line ratio is determined by atomic physics, enabling an estimate of the stellar reddening similar to how the Balmer lines probe gas-emission reddening. The He ii line ratio is measured from UV and optical spectroscopy using the Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph on board the Hubble Space Telescope for eight nearby galaxies hosting young massive star clusters. We compare our results to dust reddening values estimated from UV spectral slopes and from Balmer line ratios and find tentative evidence for systematic differences. The reddening derived from the He ii lines tends to be higher, whereas that from the UV continuum tends to be lower. A larger sample size is needed to confirm this trend. If confirmed, this may indicate an age sequence probing different stages of dust clearing. Broad He ii lines have also been detected in galaxies more distant than in our sample, providing the opportunity to estimate the dust reddening of the youngest stellar populations out to distances of ∼100 Mpc.

Paschen-line Constraints on Dust Attenuation and Star Formation at z ∼ 1–3 with JWST/NIRSpec

We use medium-resolution JWST/NIRSpec observations from the Cosmic Evolution Early Release Science Survey to place the first constraints on dust attenuation and star formation based on Paschen lines for a sizable sample of 63 galaxies at redshifts z = 1.0–3.1. Our analysis indicates strong correlations between the Balmer decrement, Hα/Hβ, and line ratios that include Paschen lines (i.e., Paα/Hβ, Paβ/Hβ, and the Paschen decrement, Paα/Paβ), suggesting that the former is sensitive to the overall dust obscuration toward H ii regions in high-redshift galaxies. The line ratios are used to derive nebular reddening, E(B − V)neb, and star formation rates (SFRs). There is marginal evidence that the SFRs deduced from Paschen lines may exceed by ≈25% those derived from Balmer lines alone, suggesting the presence of star formation that is optically thick in Balmer lines, though deeper observations are needed to confirm this result. Using the Paschen-line constraints on the bolometric SFRs, we reevaluate the relationship between dust obscuration and UV spectral slope, and find a reddening of the UV continuum that, on average, follows the SMC extinction curve. This analysis highlights the need for deeper spectroscopy of more representative samples to evaluate nebular dust attenuation and bolometric SFRs in high-redshift galaxies, and their relationship to the reddening of the UV continuum.

UVIT view of NGC 5291: Ongoing star formation in tidal dwarf galaxies at ∼ 0.35 kpc resolution

ABSTRACT NGC 5291, an early-type galaxy surrounded by a giant H i ring, is believed to be formed from collision with another galaxy. Several star forming complexes and tidal dwarf galaxies are distributed along the collisional ring which are sites of star formation in environments where extreme dynamical effects are involved. Dynamical effects can affect the star formation properties and the spatial distribution of star forming complexes along the tidal features. To study and quantify the star formation activity in the main body and in the ring structure of the NGC 5291 system, we use high spatial resolution FUV and NUV imaging observations from the Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope onboard AstroSat. A total of 57 star-forming knots are identified to be part of this interacting system out of which 12 are new detections (star forming complexes that lie inside the H i contour) compared to the previous measurements from lower resolution UV imaging. We estimate the attenuation in UV for each of the resolved star-forming knots using the UV spectral slope β, derived from the FUV − NUV colour. Using the extinction corrected UV fluxes, we derive the star formation rate of the resolved star forming complexes. The extinction corrected total star formation rate of this system is estimated as 1.75 ± 0.04 $\mathrm{M_\odot \, yr}^{-1}$. The comparison with dwarf galaxy populations (BCD, Sm, and dIm galaxies) in the nearby Universe shows that many of the knots in the NGC 5291 system have SFR values comparable to the SFR of BCD galaxies.

Closing in on the sources of cosmic reionization: First results from the GLASS-JWST program

The escape fraction of Lyman-continuum (LyC) photons (fesc) is a key parameter for determining the sources of cosmic reionization at z ≥ 6. At these redshifts, owing to the opacity of the intergalactic medium, the LyC emission cannot be measured directly. However, LyC leakers during the epoch of reionization could be identified using indirect indicators that have been extensively tested at low and intermediate redshifts. These include a high [O III]/[O II] flux ratio, high star-formation surface density, and compact sizes. In this work, we present observations of 29 4.5 ≤ z ≤ 8 gravitationally lensed galaxies in the Abell 2744 cluster field. From a combined analysis of JWST-NIRSpec and NIRCam data, we accurately derived their physical and spectroscopic properties: our galaxies have low masses (log(M⋆)∼8.5), blue UV spectral slopes (β ∼ −2.1), compact sizes (re ∼ 0.3 − 0.5 kpc), and high [O III]/[O II] flux ratios. We confirm that these properties are similar to those characterizing low-redshift LyC leakers. Indirectly inferring the fraction of escaping ionizing photons, we find that more than 80% of our galaxies have predicted fesc values larger than 0.05, indicating that they would be considered leakers. The average predicted fesc value of our sample is 0.12, suggesting that similar galaxies at z ≥ 6 have provided a substantial contribution to cosmic reionization.

The ALMA REBELS Survey. Epoch of Reionization giants: Properties of dusty galaxies at z ≈ 7

ABSTRACT We analyse FIR dust continuum measurements for 14 galaxies (redshift z ≈ 7) in the ALMA Reionization Era Bright Emission Line Survey (REBELS) Large Program to derive their physical properties. Our model uses three input data, i.e. (a) the UV spectral slope, β, (b) the observed UV continuum flux at 1500 Å, F1500, (c) the observed continuum flux at $\approx 158\, \mu$m, F158, and considers Milky Way (MW) and SMC extinction curves, along with different dust geometries. We find that REBELS galaxies have 28−90.5 per cent of their star formation obscured; the total (UV+IR) star formation rates are in the range $31.5 \lt {\rm SFR}/({\rm M}_\odot \, {\rm yr}^{-1}) \lt 129.5$. The sample-averaged dust mass and temperature are $(1.3\pm 1.1)\times 10^7 \, \mathrm{M}_\odot$ and 52 ± 11 K, respectively. However, in some galaxies dust is particularly abundant (REBELS-14, $M^{\prime }_{\rm d} \approx 3.4 \times 10^7 \, \mathrm{M}_\odot$), or hot (REBELS-18, $T^{\prime }_{\rm d} \approx 67$ K). The dust distribution is compact (&amp;lt;0.3 kpc for 70 per cent of the galaxies). The inferred dust yield per supernova is $0.1 \le y_{\rm d}/\, \mathrm{M}_\odot \le 3.3$, with 70 per cent of the galaxies requiring $y_{\rm d} \lt 0.25 \, \mathrm{M}_\odot$. Three galaxies (REBELS-12, 14, 39) require $y_{\rm d} \gt 1 \, \mathrm{M}_\odot$, which is likely inconsistent with pure SN production, and might require dust growth via accretion of heavy elements from the interstellar medium. With the SFR predicted by the model and a MW extinction curve, REBELS galaxies detected in [C ii] nicely follow the local LCII−SFR relation, and are approximately located on the Kennicutt–Schmidt relation. The sample-averaged gas depletion time is $0.11\, y_{\rm P}^{-2}$ Gyr, where yP is the ratio of the gas-to-stellar distribution radius. For some systems, a solution simultaneously matching the observed (β, F1500, F158) values cannot be found. This occurs when the index Im = (F158/F1500)/(β − βint), where βint is the intrinsic UV slope, exceeds $I_m^{*}\approx 1120$ for an MW curve. For these objects, we argue that the FIR and UV emitting regions are not co-spatial, questioning the use of the IRX–β relation.

Star Formation Rate Function at z ∼ 4.5: An Analysis from Rest UV to Optical

Abstract We present a star formation rate function (SFRF) at z ∼ 4.5 based on photometric data from the rest UV to optical of galaxies in the CANDELS GOODS-South field using spectral energy distribution (SED) fitting. We evaluate the incompleteness of our sample and correct for it to properly compare the SFRF in this study with those estimated based on other probes. The SFRF is obtained down to ∼10 M ⊙ yr−1, and it shows a significant excess compared to that estimated from the UV luminosity function and dust correction based on the UV spectral slope. As compared with the UV-based SFRF, the number density is larger by ∼1 dex at a fixed SFR, or the best-fit Schechter parameter of the characteristic SFR, SFR*, is larger by ∼1 dex. We extensively examine several assumptions on SED fitting to see the robustness of our result and find that the excess still exists even if the assumptions change such as star formation histories, dust extinction laws, and a one- or two-component model. By integrating our SFRF to 0.22 M ⊙ yr−1, the cosmic star formation rate density (CSFRD) at this epoch is calculated to be 4.53 − 0.87 + 0.94 × 10 − 2 M ⊙ yr − 1 Mpc − 3 , which is ∼0.25 dex larger than the previous measurement based on UV observations. We also find that galaxies with intensive star formation (&gt;10 M ⊙ yr−1) occupy most of the CSFRD (∼80%), suggesting that star formation activity at this epoch is dominated by intensively star-forming galaxies.

UV Spectral Slopes at z = 6−9 in the Hubble Frontier Fields: Lack of Evidence for Unusual or Population III Stellar Populations

Abstract We present new measurements of the UV spectral slope β for galaxies at z = 6−9 in the Frontier Field cluster MACS J0416.1–2403 and its parallel field to an unprecedented level of low stellar mass. We fit synthetic stellar population models to the observed spectral energy distribution and calculate β by fitting a power law to the best-fit spectrum. With this method, we report the derivation of rest-frame UV colors of galaxies for the Frontier Fields program extending out to z = 9, probing magnitudes as faint as M UV = −13.5 at z = 6. We find no significant correlation between β and rest-frame UV magnitude M 1500 all redshifts, but we do find a strong correlation between β and stellar mass, with lower-mass galaxies exhibiting bluer UV slopes. At z = 7, the bluest median value of our sample is redder than the previously reported values in the literature, whereas at z = 9, our bluest data point has a median value of β = − 2.63 − 0.43 + 0.52 . Thus, we find no evidence for extreme stellar populations at z &gt; 6. We also observe a strong correlation between β and star formation rate (SFR), such that galaxies with low SFRs exhibit bluer slopes. Additionally, there exists a star formation main sequence up to z = 9 with SFRs correlating with stellar mass. All of these relations show that β values correlate with a process that drives both the overall SFR and stellar mass assembly. Furthermore, we observe no trend between β and specific SFR, suggesting that β is getting set by a global process driven by the scale of the galaxy.

The IRX–β relation of high-redshift galaxies

ABSTRACT The relation between infrared excess (IRX) and UV spectral slope (βUV) is an empirical probe of dust properties of galaxies. The shape, scatter, and redshift evolution of this relation are not well understood, however, leading to uncertainties in estimating the dust content and star formation rates (SFRs) of galaxies at high redshift. In this study, we explore the nature and properties of the IRX–βUV relation with a sample of z = 2–6 galaxies ($M_*\approx 10^9\!-\!10^{12}\, \mathrm{M}_\odot$) extracted from high-resolution cosmological simulations (MassiveFIRE) of the Feedback in Realistic Environments (FIRE) project. The galaxies in our sample show an IRX–βUV relation that is in good agreement with the observed relation in nearby galaxies. IRX is tightly coupled to the UV optical depth, and is mainly determined by the dust-to-star geometry instead of total dust mass, while βUV is set both by stellar properties, UV optical depth, and the dust extinction law. Overall, much of the scatter in the IRX–βUV relation of our sample is found to be driven by variations of the intrinsic UV spectral slope. We further assess how the IRX–βUV relation depends on viewing direction, dust-to-metal ratio, birth-cloud structures, and the dust extinction law and we present a simple model that encapsulates most of the found dependencies. Consequently, we argue that the reported ‘deficit’ of the infrared/sub-millimetre bright objects at z ≳ 5 does not necessarily imply a non-standard dust extinction law at those epochs.

Limits to Rest-frame Ultraviolet Emission from Far-infrared-luminous z ≃ 6 Quasar Hosts

Abstract We report on a Hubble Space Telescope search for rest-frame ultraviolet emission from the host galaxies of five far-infrared-luminous z ≃ 6 quasars and the z = 5.85 hot-dust-free quasar SDSS J0005–0006. We perform 2D surface brightness modeling for each quasar using a Markov Chain Monte Carlo estimator, to simultaneously fit and subtract the quasar point source in order to constrain the underlying host galaxy emission. We measure upper limits for the quasar host galaxies of m J &gt; 22.7 mag and m H &gt; 22.4 mag, corresponding to stellar masses of M * &lt; 2 × 1011 M ⊙. These stellar mass limits are consistent with the local M BH − M * relation. Our flux limits are consistent with those predicted for the UV stellar populations of z ≃ 6 host galaxies, but likely in the presence of significant dust ( mag). We also detect a total of up to nine potential z ≃ 6 quasar companion galaxies surrounding five of the six quasars, separated from the quasars by 1.″4–3.″2, or 8.4–19.4 kpc, which may be interacting with the quasar hosts. These nearby companion galaxies have UV absolute magnitudes of −22.1 to −19.9 mag and UV spectral slopes β of −2.0 to −0.2, consistent with luminous star-forming galaxies at z ≃ 6. These results suggest that the quasars are in dense environments typical of luminous z ≃ 6 galaxies. However, we cannot rule out the possibility that some of these companions are foreground interlopers. Infrared observations with the James Webb Space Telescope will be needed to detect the z ≃ 6 quasar host galaxies and better constrain their stellar mass and dust content.

The Ionizing Photon Production Efficiency (ξion) of Lensed Dwarf Galaxies at z ∼ 2*

Abstract We measure the ionizing photon production efficiency (ξ ion) of low-mass galaxies (107.8–109.8 M ⊙) at 1.4 &lt; z &lt; 2.7 to better understand the contribution of dwarf galaxies to the ionizing background and reionization. We target galaxies that are magnified by strong-lensing galaxy clusters and use Keck/MOSFIRE to measure nebular emission-line fluxes and Hubble Space Telescope to measure the rest-UV and rest-optical photometry. We present two methods of stacking. First, we take the average of the log of Hα-to-UV luminosity ratios (L Hα /L UV) of galaxies to determine the standard log(ξ ion). Second, we take the logarithm of the total L Hα over the total L UV. We prefer the latter, as it provides the total ionizing UV luminosity density of galaxies when multiplied by the nonionizing UV luminosity density. log(ξ ion) calculated from the second method is ∼0.2 dex higher than the first method. We do not find any strong dependence between log(ξ ion) and stellar mass, far-UV magnitude (M UV), or UV spectral slope (β). We report a value of log(ξ ion) ∼ 25.47 ± 0.09 for our UV-complete sample ( ) and ∼25.37 ± 0.11 for our mass-complete sample (7.8 &lt; log(M *) &lt; 9.8). These values are consistent with measurements of more massive, more luminous galaxies in other high-redshift studies that use the same stacking technique. Our log(ξ ion) is 0.2–0.3 dex higher than low-redshift galaxies of similar mass, indicating an evolution in the stellar properties, possibly due to metallicity or age. We also find a correlation between log(ξ ion) and the equivalent widths of Hα and [O iii] λ5007 fluxes, confirming that these equivalent widths can be used to estimate ξ ion.

A3COSMOS: the dust attenuation of star-forming galaxies at z = 2.5–4.0 from the COSMOS-ALMA archive

ABSTRACT We present an analysis of the dust attenuation of star-forming galaxies at z = 2.5–4.0 through the relationship between the UV spectral slope (β), stellar mass (M*), and the infrared excess (IRX = LIR/LUV) based on far-infrared continuum observations from the Atacama Large Millimeter/sub-millimeter Array (ALMA). Our study exploits the full ALMA archive over the COSMOS field processed by the A3COSMOS team, which includes an unprecedented sample of ∼1500 galaxies at z ∼ 3 as primary or secondary targets in ALMA band 6 or 7 observations with a median continuum sensitivity of 126 $\rm {\mu Jy\, beam}^{-1}$ (1σ). The detection rate is highly mass dependent, decreasing drastically below log (M*/M⊙) = 10.5. The detected galaxies show that the IRX–β relationship of massive (log M*/M⊙ &amp;gt; 10) main-sequence galaxies at z = 2.5–4.0 is consistent with that of local galaxies, while starbursts are generally offset by $\sim 0.5\, {\rm dex}$ to larger IRX values. At the low-mass end, we derive upper limits on the infrared luminosities through stacking of the ALMA data. The combined IRX–M* relation at $\rm {log\, ({\it M}_{\ast }/\mathrm{M}_{\odot })\gt 9}$ exhibits a significantly steeper slope than reported in previous studies at similar redshifts, implying little dust obscuration at log M*/M⊙ &amp;lt; 10. However, our results are consistent with earlier measurements at z ∼ 5.5, indicating a potential redshift evolution between z ∼ 2 and z ∼ 6. Deeper observations targeting low-mass galaxies will be required to confirm this finding.

Active and dust obscured star-forming galaxies at z ∼ 4 probed with UV spectral slope beta

AbstractWe investigate the stellar population of star-forming galaxies at z ∼ 4 by focusing on their slope of rest-frame ultraviolet continuum called UV spectral slope β. We analyze the sample of bright Lyman Break Galaxies (LBGs) with Subaru/i′≤26.0in the Subaru/XMM-Newton Deep Survey field. Our detailed SED fitting analysis indicates that the LBGs with observed UV slope &gt; −1.7, , Av &gt; 1.0, and intrinsic UV slope &lt; −2.5 are the intrinsically active star-forming galaxies with star formation rates larger than a few × 102 M⊙yr−1. A significant fraction of the UV-selected LBGs at z ∼ 4 is on-going active and dust obscured star-forming galaxies.

Control of Coagulant Dosing for Humic Substances Based on Ultraviolet Spectrum Analysis

Humic substance (HS) is a main component of dissolved organic matter in the aquatic environment and significantly affects water treatment processes. To investigate the applicability and principle of UV spectrum analysis for coagulation control, laboratory jar tests were conducted with synthetic waters that had varying concentrations of HS and kaolinite. Thus, the influence of water quality conditions on the optimal coagulant dose (OCD) was determined and further correlated to Specific Ultraviolet Absorbance (SUVA254) and the ultraviolet spectral slopes of the coagulated water. Subsequently, the relationship between the UV spectral slopes and organic fractionation was further identified by using size exclusion chromatography (SEC). The results showed that the coagulant demands of the synthetic waters were positively related to dissolved organic carbon (DOC). Consequently, a stoichiometric relationship (0.61 mg·mg-1 calculated as Al/DOC) was found between the coagulant demand and initial DOC of the synthetic water. As the coagulant dose increased, SUVA254 decreased from 8.9 L·(mg·m)-1 to a steady level of 2.0 L·(mg·m)-1 and the removal efficiency of DOC was positively correlated with SUVA254. Spectral slopes in different wavelength ranges had showed similar tendencies, with S275-295 having the best correlation with SUVA254 (R2=0.81). Furthermore, SEC results demonstrated that coagulation preferentially removed humic substances, leading to reduced humification. As a result, S275-295 had the highest correlation with the portion of UVA254 contributed by humic substances in water. Therefore, online measurement of ultraviolet spectral slopes was an important aspect in the control of coagulant dosing.

Dust attenuation in 2 &lt; z &lt; 3 star-forming galaxies from deep ALMA observations of the Hubble Ultra Deep Field

We present the results of a new study of the relationship between infrared excess (IRX), UV spectral slope (beta) and stellar mass at redshifts 2<z<3, based on a deep Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA) 1.3-mm continuum mosaic of the Hubble Ultra Deep Field (HUDF). Excluding the most heavily-obscured sources, we use a stacking analysis to show that z~2.5 star-forming galaxies in the mass range 9.25 <= log(M/Msun) <= 10.75 are fully consistent with the IRX-beta relation expected for a relatively grey attenuation curve, similar to the commonly adopted Calzetti law. Based on a large, mass complete, sample of 2 <= z <= 3 star-forming galaxies drawn from multiple surveys, we proceed to derive a new empirical relationship between beta and stellar mass, making it possible to predict UV attenuation (A_1600) and IRX as a function of stellar mass, for any assumed attenuation law. Once again, we find that z~2.5 star-forming galaxies follow A_1600-mass and IRX-mass relations consistent with a relatively grey attenuation law, and find no compelling evidence that star-forming galaxies at this epoch follow a reddening law as steep as the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC) extinction curve. In fact, we use a simple simulation to demonstrate that previous determinations of the IRX-beta relation may have been biased toward low values of IRX at red values of beta, mimicking the signature expected for an SMC-like dust law. We show that this provides a plausible mechanism for reconciling apparently contradictory results in the literature and that, based on typical measurement uncertainties, stellar mass provides a cleaner prediction of UV attenuation than beta. Although the situation at lower stellar masses remains uncertain, we conclude that for 2<z<3 star-forming galaxies with log(M/Msun) >= 9.75, both the IRX-beta and IRX-mass relations are well described by a Calzetti-like attenuation law.

The MOSDEF Survey: Direct Observational Constraints on the Ionizing Photon Production Efficiency, ξion, at z ∼ 2

Abstract We combine Hα and Hβ spectroscopic measurements and UV photometry for a sample of 673 galaxies from the MOSDEF survey to constrain hydrogen-ionizing photon production efficiencies ( ) at z = 1.4–2.6. We find , assuming the Calzetti (SMC) curve for the UV dust correction and a scatter of 0.28 dex in the distribution. After accounting for observational uncertainties and variations in dust attenuation, we conclude that the remaining scatter in is likely dominated by galaxy-to-galaxy variations in stellar populations, including the slope and upper-mass cutoff of the initial mass function, stellar metallicity, star formation burstiness, and stellar evolution (e.g., single/binary star evolution). Moreover, is elevated in galaxies with high ionization states (high [O iii]/[O ii]) and low oxygen abundances (low [N ii]/Hα and high [O iii]/Hβ) in the ionized ISM. However, does not correlate with the offset from the z ∼ 0 star-forming locus in the BPT diagram, suggesting no change in the hardness of the ionizing radiation accompanying the offset from the z ∼ 0 sequence. We also find that galaxies with blue UV spectral slopes ( ) have elevated by a factor of ∼2 relative to the average of the sample ( ). If these blue galaxies are similar to those at z &gt; 6, our results suggest that a lower Lyman-continuum escape fraction is required for galaxies to maintain reionization, compared to the canonical predictions from stellar population models. Furthermore, we demonstrate that even with robustly dust-corrected Hα, the UV dust attenuation can cause on average a ∼0.3 dex systematic uncertainty in calculations.

Far-infrared and Nebular Star Formation Rates of Dusty Star-forming Galaxies from Herschel and 3D-HST at z ∼ 1

We present results of a multi-band Spectral Energy Distribution (SED) and nebular emission line analysis of a sample of 1147 spectroscopically identified dusty star-forming galaxies at 0.49 < z < 2.24 from Herschel/SPIRE and HST/WFC3 grism observations in the five CANDELS fields: AEGIS, GOODS-N, GOODS-S, COSMOS, and UDS. We use the spectroscopic redshifts measured from nebular lines to construct the SEDs of galaxies from the optical to the infrared using HST and Herschel photometry. We further utilize the 3D-HST grism Ha line flux measurements to measure the nebular star-formation rates after correcting for attenuation. We compare this with direct observations of the SFR measurements in the far-infrared from Herschel. Observation of the infrared excess (IRX) in this sample as a function of the UV spectral slope reveals that these DSFGs deviate toward bluer colors, thus sitting well above the expected relation for normal star-forming galaxies. The high-z dusty galaxies have a stellar mass distribution that is skewed towards larger masses, with $M_{med} = 2.6 \times 10^{10} M_{\odot}$. However this population has star-formation rates consistent with the most massive tail of the main sequence, showing that these are both the most massive and the most star-forming galaxies during the peak epoch of formation.