Evolution of the luminosity function, star formation rate, morphology, and size of star-forming galaxies selected at rest-frame 1500 and 2800 angstrom

• Using the multiwavelength photometric and spectroscopic data covering the Chandra Deep Field South obtained within the Great Observatories Origins Deep Survey, we investigate the rest-frame UV properties of galaxies to z similar to 2.2, including the evolution of the luminosity function, the luminosity density, star formation rate (SFR), and galaxy morphology. We find a significant brightening (similar to 1 mag) in the rest-frame 2800 angstrom characteristic magnitude (M*) over the redshift range 0.3 less than or similar to z less than or similar to 1.7 and no evolution at higher redshifts. The rest-frame 2800 angstrom luminosity density shows an increase by a factor of similar to 4 over the redshift range investigated. We estimate the SFR density to z similar to 2.2 from the 1500 and 2800 angstrom luminosities. When no correction for extinction is made, we find that the SFR derived from the 2800 angstrom luminosity density is almost a factor of 2 higher than that derived from the 1500 8 luminosities. Attributing this difference to differential dust extinction, we find that E(B - V) = 0.20 results in the same extinction-corrected SFR from both 1500 and 2800 angstrom luminosities. The extinction-corrected SFR is a factor of similar to 6.5 (similar to 3.7) higher than the uncorrected SFR derived from 1500 8 ( 2800 8) luminosity. We investigate the morphological composition of our sample by fitting Sersic profiles to the HST ACS galaxy images at a fixed rest-frame wavelength of 2800 angstrom at 0.5 less than or similar to z less than or similar to 2.2. We find that the fraction of apparently bulge-dominated galaxies (Sersic index n > 2.5) increases from similar to 10% at z similar to 0.5 to similar to 30% at z similar to 2.2. At the same time, we note that galaxies get bluer at increasing redshift. This suggests a scenario where an increased fraction of the star formation takes place in bulge-dominated systems at high redshift. This could be evidence that the present-day elliptical galaxies are a result of assembly (i.e., mergers) of galaxies at z greater than or similar to 1. Finally, we find that galaxy size for a luminosity-selected sample evolves as r(h) proportional to (1+z)(-1.1) between redshifts z = 2.2 and 1.1. This is consistent with previous measurements and suggests a similar evolution over the redshift range 0 less than or similar to z less than or similar to 6.

Subject headings

NATURVETENSKAP  -- Fysik -- Astronomi, astrofysik och kosmologi (hsv//swe)

NATURAL SCIENCES  -- Physical Sciences -- Astronomy, Astrophysics and Cosmology (hsv//eng)

Keyword

cosmology : observations

galaxies : distances and redshifts

galaxies : evolution

galaxies : formation

galaxies : high-redshift

Astronomy and astrophysics

Astronomi och astrofysik

Publication and Content Type

ref (subject category)

art (subject category)