Spitzer Mid-IR Spectroscopy of Infrared-Luminous Galaxies at z ˜ 1 -2

Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astronomy

Scientific paper

Rate now

  [ 0.00 ] – not rated yet Voters 0   Comments 0

Details

Scientific paper

I discuss Spitzer GO programs aimed at studying the mid-IR spectral properties of IR-luminous galaxies at high z. I present the IRS low-resolution, mid-IR spectra of a sample of 52 sources from our GO1 medium size program. We found that ˜ 75% of the sample are at z ˜ 1.5 - 2.6, with redshifts determined based on features including PAH emission and silicate absorption in the mid-IR spectra. This dataset revealed the first direct evidence that PAH features are already a significant component of a dusty galaxy's spectrum as early as z=2. Among the 52 targets, one third are starbursts at z˜2 with strong PAH emission, and two thirds are AGN-dominated systems with strong silicate absorption and weak or no PAH emission. The bulk of the sample are dusty, infrared-luminous galaxies at z ˜ 1-3 with estimated Lbol ˜ 1013 L_&sun;. At such a high luminosity, a significant fraction of our sample have dust-obscured, strong AGN components. I will discuss the implication for 24 μm-selected, 1 mJy or brighter samples. I also present the ground-based near-IR/optical spectroscopy and 1.2 mm continuum followup observations of this sample. The Keck spectroscopic redshifts confirm the redshift measurements based on the mid-IR spectra. Since half of our sample are optically faint sources with R ≥ 25.5 mag (Vega), our results demonstrate the potential of using mid-infrared spectroscopy, especially the aromatic and silicate features produced by dust grains, to directly probe optically faint and infrared-luminous populations at high redshift.

No associations

LandOfFree

Say what you really think

Search LandOfFree.com for scientists and scientific papers. Rate them and share your experience with other people.

Rating

Spitzer Mid-IR Spectroscopy of Infrared-Luminous Galaxies at z ˜ 1 -2 does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this scientific paper.

If you have personal experience with Spitzer Mid-IR Spectroscopy of Infrared-Luminous Galaxies at z ˜ 1 -2, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Spitzer Mid-IR Spectroscopy of Infrared-Luminous Galaxies at z ˜ 1 -2 will most certainly appreciate the feedback.

Rate now

     

Profile ID: LFWR-SCP-O-955120

  Search
All data on this website is collected from public sources. Our data reflects the most accurate information available at the time of publication.