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Register a new userA near/mid infrared search for ultra-bright submillimetre galaxies: Searching for Cosmic Eyelash Analogues
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We present results from a near/mid IR search for submillimetre galaxies over a region of 6230 sq deg. of the southern sky. We used a cross-correlation of the VISTA Hemispheric Survey (VHS) and the WISE database to identify bright galaxies (K_s <= 18.2) with near/mid IR colours similar to those of the high redshift lensed sub-mm galaxy SMM J2135-0102. We find 7 galaxies which fulfill all five adopted near/mid IR colour (NMIRQC) criteria and resemble the SED of the reference galaxy at these wavelengths. For these galaxies, which are broadly distributed in the sky, we determined photometric redshifts in the range z=1.6-3.2. We searched the VHS for clusters of galaxies, which may be acting as gravitational lenses, and found that 6 out of the 7 galaxies are located within 3.5 arcmin of a cluster/group of galaxies. Using the J-K_s vs J sequences we determine photometric redshifts for these clusters/groups in the range z=0.2-0.9. We propose the newly identified sources are ultra-bright high redshift lensed SMG candidates. Follow-up observations in the sub-mm and mm are key to determine the ultimate nature of these objects.
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Submillimetre-selected galaxies (SMGs) at high redshift ($z$ $sim$ 2) are potential host galaxies of active galactic nuclei (AGN). If the local Universe is a good guide, $sim$ 50$%$ of the obscured AGN amongst the SMG population could be missed even in the deepest X-ray surveys. Radio observations are insensitive to obscuration; therefore, very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) can be used as a tool to identify AGN in obscured systems. A well-established upper limit to the brightness temperature of 10$^5$ K exists in star-forming systems, thus VLBI observations can distinguish AGN from star-forming systems via brightness temperature measurements. We present 1.6 GHz European VLBI Network (EVN) observations of four SMGs (with measured redshifts) to search for evidence of compact radio components associated with AGN cores. For two of the sources, e-MERLIN images are also presented. Out of the four SMGs observed, we detect one source, J123555.14, that has an integrated EVN flux density of 201 $pm$ 15.2 $mu$Jy, corresponding to a brightness temperature of 5.2 $pm$ 0.7 $times$ 10$^5$ K. We therefore identify that the radio emission from J123555.14 is associated with an AGN. We do not detect compact radio emission from a possible AGN in the remaining sources (J123600.10, J131225.73, and J163650.43). In the case of J131225.73, this is particularly surprising, and the data suggest that this may be an extended, jet-dominated AGN that is resolved by VLBI. Since the morphology of the faint radio source population is still largely unknown at these scales, it is possible that with a $sim$ 10 mas resolution, VLBI misses (or resolves) many radio AGN extended on kiloparsec scales.
High-redshift submillimetre-bright galaxies identified by blank field surveys at millimetre and submillimetre wavelengths appear in the region of the IRAC colour-colour diagrams previously identified as the domain of luminous active galactic nuclei (AGNs). Our analysis using a set of empirical and theoretical dusty starburst spectral energy distribution (SED) models shows that power-law continuum sources associated with hot dust heated by young (<100 Myr old), extreme starbursts at z>2 also occupy the same general area as AGNs in the IRAC colour-colour plots. A detailed comparison of the IRAC colours and SEDs demonstrates that the two populations are distinct from each other, with submillimetre-bright galaxies having a systematically flatter IRAC spectrum (>1 mag bluer in the observed [4.5]-[8.0] colour). Only about 20% of the objects overlap in the colour-colour plots, and this low fraction suggests that submillimetre galaxies powered by a dust-obscured AGN are not common. The red IR colours of the submillimetre galaxies are distinct from those of the ubiquitous foreground IRAC sources, and we propose a set of IR colour selection criteria for identifying SMG counterparts that can be used even in the absence of radio or Spitzer MIPS 24 micron data.
We investigate the evolutionary connection between local IR-bright galaxies ($log L_{rm IR}ge 11.4,L_odot$) and quasars. We use high angular resolution ($sim$ 0.3-0.4 arcsec $sim$ few hundred parsecs) $8-13,mu$m ground-based spectroscopy to disentangle the AGN mid-IR properties from those of star formation. The comparison between the nuclear $11.3,mu$m PAH feature emission and that measured with Spitzer/IRS indicates that the star formation is extended over a few kpc in the IR-bright galaxies. The AGN contribution to the total IR luminosity of IR-bright galaxies is lower than in quasars. Although the dust distribution is predicted to change as IR-bright galaxies evolve to IR-bright quasars and then to optical quasars, we show that the AGN mid-IR emission of all the quasars in our sample is not significantly different. In contrast, the nuclear emission of IR-bright galaxies with low AGN contributions appears more heavily embedded in dust although there is no clear trend with the interaction stage or projected nuclear separation. This suggests that the changes in the distribution of the nuclear obscuring material may be taking place rapidly and at different interaction stages washing out the evidence of an evolutionary path. When compared to normal AGN, the nuclear star formation activity of quasars appears to be dimming whereas it is enhanced in some IR-bright nuclei, suggesting that the latter are in an earlier star-formation dominated phase.
Water megamasers at 22 GHz with a gas disk configuration in galaxies provide the most precise measurements of supermassive black hole masses, as well as independent constraints on the Hubble constant in the nearby universe. The existence of other maser types, such as jet or outflow masers, represents another tracer for AGN science. However, the detection rate of water megamasers in galaxies is extremely low. Over 40 years, only $sim$ 160 galaxies are found to harbour maser emission, and $sim$ 30% of them show features in their maser emission that indicate a disk-like geometry. Therefore, increasing the detection rate of masers is a crucial task to allow expanding on maser studies. We present a comparison of mid-infrared spectroscopic data between a maser galaxy sample and a Seyfert 2 control sample. We find that maser galaxies show significant peculiarities in their mid-infrared spectra: (1) Maser galaxies tend to present stronger silicate absorption at $tau$ 9.7 $mu$m than the control sample, (2) PAH 11.3 $mu$m emission in maser galaxies is much weaker than in the control sample, (3) spectral indices at 20-30 $mu$m are steeper in maser galaxies than in the control sample and tend to be mid-infrared enhanced population. We conclude that there may be good indicators in mid-infrared and far-infrared which could differentiate maser and non-maser Seyfert 2 galaxies. Upcoming infrared facilities, such as the James Webb Space Telescope, may be able to exploit these and other useful criteria and tracers for water megamaser observations.
We present the results of deep near-infrared spectroscopy of seven submillimetre-selected galaxies from the SCUBA 8-mJy and CUDSS surveys. These galaxies were selected because they are too faint to be accessible to optical spectrographs on large telescopes. We obtain a spectroscopic redshift for one object, and likely redshifts for two more, based on a combination of marginal emission line detections and the shape of the continuum. All three redshifts broadly agree with estimates from their radio/submm spectral energy distributions. From the emission line strengths of these objects, we infer star formation rates of 10-25 Msun/yr, while the lack of detections in the other objects imply even lower rates. By comparing our results with those of other authors, we conclude it is likely that the vast majority (more than 90 per cent) of the star formation in these objects is completely extinguished at rest-frame optical wavelengths, and the emission lines originate in a relatively unobscured region. Finally, we look at future prospects for making spectroscopic redshift determinations of submm galaxies.
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