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Probing cosmic dawn with emission lines: predicting infrared and nebular line emission for ALMA and JWST

Accepted version
Peer-reviewed

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Authors

Katz, H 
Galligan, TP 
Kimm, T 
Rosdahl, J 
Haehnelt, MG 

Abstract

Infrared and nebular lines provide some of our best probes of the physics regulating the properties of the interstellar medium (ISM) at high-redshift. However, interpreting the physical conditions of high-redshift galaxies directly from emission lines remains complicated due to inhomogeneities in temperature, density, metallicity, ionisation parameter, and spectral hardness. We present a new suite of cosmological, radiation-hydrodynamics simulations, each centred on a massive Lyman-break galaxy that resolves such properties in an inhomogeneous ISM. Many of the simulated systems exhibit transient but well defined gaseous disks that appear as velocity gradients in [CII]~158.6μm emission. Spatial and spectral offsets between [CII]~158.6μm and [OIII]~88.33μm are common, but not ubiquitous, as each line probes a different phase of the ISM. These systems fall on the local [CII]-SFR relation, consistent with newer observations that question previously observed [CII]~158.6μm deficits. Our galaxies are consistent with the nebular line properties of observed z∼2−3 galaxies and reproduce offsets on the BPT and mass-excitation diagrams compared to local galaxies due to higher star formation rate (SFR), excitation, and specific-SFR, as well as harder spectra from young, metal-poor binaries. We predict that local calibrations between Hα and [OII]~3727\AA luminosity and galaxy SFR apply up to z>10, as do the local relations between certain strong line diagnostics (R23 and [OIII]~5007\AA/Hβ) and galaxy metallicity. Our new simulations are well suited to interpret the observations of line emission from current (ALMA and HST) and upcoming facilities (JWST and ngVLA).

Description

Keywords

ISM: kinematics and dynamics, ISM: lines and bands, galaxies: high-redshift, galaxies: star formation

Journal Title

Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society

Conference Name

Journal ISSN

0035-8711
1365-2966

Volume Title

487

Publisher

Oxford University Press (OUP)

Rights

All rights reserved
Sponsorship
European Research Council (320596)
Science and Technology Facilities Council (ST/M007065/1)
STFC (ST/M007073/1)
Science and Technology Facilities Council (ST/R00689X/1)
STFC (ST/T001550/1)
Science and Technology Facilities Council (ST/N000927/1)
Science and Technology Facilities Council (ST/S000623/1)