GMASS Ultradeep Spectroscopy of Galaxies at 1.4<z<2. II. Superdense passive galaxies: how did they form and evolve ?

Details GMASS Ultradeep Spectroscopy of Galaxies at 1.4<z<2. II. Superdense passive galaxies: how did they form and evolve ? GMASS Ultradeep Spectroscopy of Galaxies at 1.4<z<2. II. Superdense passive galaxies: how did they form and evolve ?

2008-01-08

arxiv.org/abs/0801.1184v1

Astron.Astrophys.482:21-42,2008

Astronomy and Astrophysics

Astrophysics

22 pages, 23 figures, Astronomy & Astrophysics, in press

Scientific paper

10.1051/0004-6361:20078739

We combine ultradeep optical spectroscopy from the GMASS project ("Galaxy Mass Assembly ultradeep Spectroscopic Survey") with GOODS multi-band photometry and HST imaging to study a sample of passive galaxiesat 1.392. These galaxies have morphologies that are predominantly compact and spheroidal.However, their sizes (R_e <~ 1 kpc) are much smaller than those of spheroids in the present--day Universe. Their stellar mass surface densities are consequently higher by ~1 dex if compared to spheroids at z~0 with the same mass. Their rest-frame B-band surface brightness scales with the effective radius, but the offset with respect to the surface brightness of the local Kormendy relation is too large to be explained by simple passive evolution. At z~1, a larger fraction of passive galaxies follows the z~0 size -- mass relation. Superdense relics with R_e~1 kpc are extremely rare at z~0 with respect to z>1, and absent if R_e<1 kpc. Because of the similar sizes and mass densities, we suggest that the superdense passive galaxies at 12. The results are compared with theoretical models and the main implications discussed in the framework of massive galaxy formation and evolution.

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