Exploring the Galaxy Mass-Metallicity Relation at z~3-5

Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astronomy

Scientific paper

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Gamma-Ray Sources (Astronomical), Redshift, Stellar Mass, Star Formation, Gamma-Ray Sources, Gamma-Ray Bursts, Distances, Redshifts, Radial Velocities, Spatial Distribution Of Galaxies, Masses, Star Formation

Scientific paper

Long-duration gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) provide a premier tool for studying high-redshift star-forming galaxies thanks to their extreme brightness and association with massive stars. Here we use GRBs to study the galaxy mass-metallicity (M*-Z) relation at z~3-5, where conventional direct metallicity measurements are extremely challenging. We use the interstellar medium metallicities of long-duration GRB hosts derived from afterglow absorption spectroscopy (Z~0.01-1 Zsolar), in conjunction with host galaxy stellar masses determined from deep Spitzer 3.6 μm observations of 20 GRB hosts. We detect about 1/4 of the hosts with MAB(I)~-21.5 to -22.5 mag, and place a limit of MAB(I)>~-19 mag on the remaining hosts from a stacking analysis. Using a conservative range of mass-to-light ratios for simple stellar populations (with ages of 70 Myr to ~2 Gyr), we infer the host stellar masses and present the galaxy mass-metallicity measurements at z~3-5 (~3.5). We find that the detected GRB hosts, with M*~2×1010 Msolar, display a wide range of metallicities, but that the mean metallicity at this mass scale, Z~0.1 Zsolar, is lower than measurements at z<~3. Combined with stacking of the non-detected hosts (with M*<~4×109 Msolar and Z<~0.03 Zsolar), we find evidence for the existence of an M*-Z relation at z~3.5 and continued evolution of this relation to systematically lower metallicities from z~2.

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