No Arabic abstract
We discuss the X-ray properties of the radio sources detected in a deep 1.4 and 5 GHz VLA Radio survey of the Extended Chandra Deep Field South (E-CDFS). Among the 266 radio sources detected, we find 89 sources (1/3 of the total) with X-ray counterparts in the catalog of the 1Ms exposure of the central 0.08 deg^2 (Giacconi et al. 2002; Alexander et al. 2003) or in the catalog of the 250 ks exposure of the 0.3 deg^2 E-CDFS field (Lehmer et al. 2005). For 76 (85%) of these sources we have spectroscopic or photometric redshifts, and therefore we are able to derive their intrinsic properties from X-ray spectral analysis, namely intrinsic absorption and total X-ray luminosities. We find that the population of submillijansky radio sources with X-ray counterparts is composed of a mix of roughly 1/3 star forming galaxies and 2/3 AGN. The distribution of intrinsic absorption among X-ray detected radio sources is different from that of the X-ray selected sample. Namely, the fraction of low absorption sources is at least two times larger than that of X-ray selected sources in the CDFS. This is mostly due to the larger fraction of star forming galaxies present among the X-ray detected radio sources. If we investigate the distribution of intrinsic absorption among sources with L_X>10^42 erg s^-1 in the hard 2-10 keV band (therefore in the AGN luminosity regime), we find agreement between the X-ray population with and without radio emission. In general, radio detected X-ray AGN are not more heavily obscured than the non radio detected AGN. This argues against the use of radio surveys as an efficient way to search for the missing population of strongly absorbed AGN.
Deep radio observations at 1.4GHz for the Extended Chandra Deep Field South were performed in June through September of 2007 and presented in a first data release (Miller et al. 2008). The survey was made using six separate pointings of the Very Large Array (VLA) with over 40 hours of observation per pointing. In the current paper, we improve on the data reduction to produce a second data release (DR2) mosaic image. This DR2 image covers an area of about a third of a square degree and reaches a best rms sensitivity of 6 uJy and has a typical sensitivity of 7.4 uJy per 2.8 by 1.6 beam. We also present a more comprehensive catalog, including sources down to peak flux densities of five or more times the local rms noise along with information on source sizes and relevant pointing data. We discuss in some detail the consideration of whether sources are resolved under the complication of a radio image created as a mosaic of separate pointings each suffering some degree of bandwidth smearing, and the accurate evaluation of the flux densities of such sources. Finally, the radio morphologies and optical/near-IR counterpart identifications (Bonzini et al. 2012) are used to identify 17 likely multiple-component sources and arrive at a catalog of 883 radio sources, which is roughly double the number of sources contained in the first data release.
We provide important new constraints on the nature and redshift distribution of optically faint (R>25) X-ray sources in the Chandra Deep Field South Survey. We show that we can derive accurate photometric redshifts for the spectroscopically unidentified sources thus maximizing the redshift completeness for the whole X-ray sample. Our new redshift distribution for the X-ray source population is in better agreement with that predicted by X-ray background synthesis models; however, we still find an overdensity of low redshift (z<1) sources. The optically faint sources are mainly X-ray absorbed AGN, as determined from direct X-ray spectral analysis and other diagnostics. Many of these optically faint sources have high (>10) X-ray-to-optical flux ratios. We also find that ~71% of them are well fitted with the SED of an early-type galaxy with <z_phot>~1.9 and the remaining 29% with irregular or starburst galaxies mainly at z_phot>3. We estimate that 23% of the optically faint sources are X-ray absorbed QSOs. The overall population of X-ray absorbed QSOs contributes a ~15% fraction of the [2-10] keV X-ray Background (XRB) whereas current XRB synthesis models predict a ~38% contribution.
We present the optical and infrared identifications of the 266 radio sources detected at 20 cm with the Very Large Array in the Chandra Deep Field South (Kellermann et al. 2008). Using deep i-band Advanced Camera for Surveys, R-band Wide Field Imager, K-band SOFI/NTT, K-band ISAAC/VLT and Spitzer imaging data, we are able to find reliable counterparts for 254 (~95%) VLA sources. Twelve radio sources remain unidentified and three of them are ``empty fields. Using literature and our own data we are able to assign redshifts to 186 (~70%) radio sources: 108 are spectroscopic redshifts and 78 reliable photometric redshifts. Based on the rest frame colors and morphological distributions of the host galaxies we find evidences for a change in the submillijansky radio source population: a) above ~ 0.08 mJy early-type galaxies are dominating; b) at flux densities below ~0.08 mJy, starburst galaxies become dominant.
We report 20 and 6 cm VLA deep observations of the CDF-S including the Extended CDF-S. We discuss the radio properties of 266 cataloged radio sources, of which 198 are above a 20 cm completeness level reaching down to 43 microJy at the center of the field. Survey observations made at 6 cm over a more limited region covers the original CDF-S to a comparable level of sensitivity as the 20 cm observations. Of 266 cataloged radio sources, 52 have X-ray counterparts in the CDF-S and a further 37 in the E-CDF-S area not covered by the 1 Megasecond exposure. Using a wide range of material, we have found optical or infrared counterparts for 254 radio sources, of which 186 have either spectroscopic or photometric redshifts (Paper II). Three radio sources have no apparent counterpart at any other wavelength. Measurements of the 20 cm radio flux density at the position of each CDF-S X-ray source detected a further 30 radio sources above a conservative 3-sigma detection limit. X-ray and sub-mm observations have been traditionally used as a measure of AGN and star formation activity, respectively. These new observations probe the faint end of both the star formation and radio galaxy/AGN population, as well as the connection between the formation and evolution of stars and SMBHs. Both of the corresponding gravitational and nuclear fusion driven energy sources can lead to radio synchrotron emission. AGN and radio galaxies dominate at high flux densities. Although emission from star formation becomes more prominent at the microjansky levels reached by deep radio surveys, even for the weakest sources, we still find an apparent significant contribution from low luminosity AGN as well as from star formation.
We present the results of a program to acquire high-quality optical spectra of X-ray sources detected in the E-CDF-S and its central area. New spectroscopic redshifts are measured for 283 counterparts to Chandra sources with deep exposures (t~2-9 hr per pointing) using multi-slit facilities on both the VLT and Keck thus bringing the total number of spectroscopically-identified X-ray sources to over 500 in this survey field. We provide a comprehensive catalog of X-ray sources detected in the E-CDF-S including the optical and near-infrared counterparts, and redshifts (both spectroscopic and photometric) that incorporate published spectroscopic catalogs thus resulting in a final sample with a high fraction (80%) of X-ray sources having secure identifications. We demonstrate the remarkable coverage of the Lx-z plane now accessible from our data while emphasizing the detection of AGNs that contribute to the faint end of the luminosity function at 1.5<z<3. Our redshift catalog includes 17 type 2 QSOs that significantly increases such samples (2x). With our deepest VIMOS observation, we identify elusive optically-faint galaxies (R~25) at z~2-3 based upon the detection of interstellar absorption lines; we highlight one such case, an absorption-line galaxy at z=3.208 having no obvious signs of an AGN in its optical spectrum. In addition, we determine distances to eight galaxy groups with extended X-ray emission. Finally, we measure the physical extent of known large-scale structures (z~0.7) evident in the CDF-S. While a thick sheet (radial size of 67.7 Mpc) at z~0.67 extends over the full field, the z~0.73 structure is thin (18.8 Mpc) and filamentary as traced by both AGNs and galaxy groups. In the appendix, we provide spectroscopic redshifts for 49 counterparts to fainter X-ray sources detected only in the 1 and 2 Ms catalogs, and 48 VLA radio sources not detected in X-rays.