No Arabic abstract
(Abridged) Age derivation techniques for unresolved stellar populations at high redshifts are explored using the NUV spectrum of LBDS~53W091 and LBDS~53W069. The photometry and morphology of these galaxies suggest they are early-type systems,a feature that makes them ideal test beds for the analysis of their ages and metallicities. In the analysis that is based on simple stellar population models,we find a significant degeneracy between the derived ages and metallicities both in optical+NIR photometric and NUV spectroscopic analyses. This degeneracy is not so strong for LBDS~53W069. However even in this case the stellar age cannot be constrained better than to a range roughly encompassing one third of the age of the Universe at the observed redshift. We have explored several independent population synthesis models and consistently found similar results. Broadband photometry straddling the rest-frame 4000A break is also subject to a strong age-metallicity degeneracy. The use of realistic chemical enrichment assumptions significantly helps in disentangling the degeneracy. Based on this method, we derive the average stellar age for both galaxies around 3.6-3.8 Gyr with better constraints on the youngest possible ages. From the observational point of view, the most efficient (and feasible) way to set limits on unresolved stellar populations comprises a combination of Balmer absorption lines along with either low SNR rest frame NUV spectroscopy or accurate optical and NIR photometry.
We use high-resolution ($approx 10$ pc), zoom-in simulations of a typical (stellar mass $M_starsimeq10^{10}M_odot$) Lyman Break Galaxy (LBG) at $zsimeq 6$ to investigate the stellar populations of its six dwarf galaxy satellites, whose stellar [gas] masses are in the range $log (M_star/M_odot) simeq 6-9$ [$log (M_{gas}/M_odot) simeq4.3-7.75$]. The properties and evolution of satellites show no dependence on the distance from the central massive LBG ($< 11.5$ kpc). Instead, their star formation and chemical enrichment histories are tightly connected their stellar (and sub-halo) mass. High-mass dwarf galaxies ($rm M_star gtrsim 5times 10^8 M_odot$) experience a long history of star formation, characterised by many merger events. Lower-mass systems go through a series of short star formation episodes, with no signs of mergers; their star formation activity starts relatively late ($zapprox 7$), and it is rapidly quenched by internal stellar feedback. In spite of the different evolutionary patterns, all satellites show a spherical morphology, with ancient and more metal-poor stars located towards the inner regions. All six dwarf satellites experienced high star formation rate ($rm >5,M_odot yr ^{-1}$) bursts, which can be detected by JWST while targeting high-$z$ LBGs.
This chapter summarizes our current understanding of the stellar population properties of bulges and outlines important future research directions.
The well-known age-metallicity-attenuation degeneracy does not permit unique and good estimates of basic parameters of stars and stellar populations. The effects of dust can be avoided using spectral line indices, but current methods have not been able to break the age-metallicity degeneracy. Here we show that using at least two new spectral line indices defined and measured on high-resolution (R= 6000) spectra of a signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) > 10 one gets unambiguous estimates of the age and metallicity of intermediate to old stellar populations. Spectroscopic data retrieved with new astronomical facilities, e.g., X-shooter, MEGARA, and MOSAIC, can be employed to infer the physical parameters of the emitting source by means of spectral line index and index--index diagram analysis.
We present the results of the VLT/VIMOS integral-field spectroscopic observations of the inner 28x28 (3.1 kpc x 3.1 kpc) of the interacting spiral NGC 5719, which is known to host two co-spatial counter-rotating stellar discs. At each position in the field of view, the observed galaxy spectrum is decomposed into the contributions of the spectra of two stellar and one ionised-gas components. We measure the kinematics and the line strengths of the Lick indices of the two stellar counter-rotating components. We model the data of each stellar component with single stellar population models that account for the alpha/Fe overabundance. We also derive the distribution and kinematics of the ionised-gas disc, that is associated with the younger, less rich in metals, more alpha-enhanced, and less luminous stellar component. They are both counter-rotating with respect the main stellar body of the galaxy. These findings prove the scenario where gas was accreted first by NGC 5719 onto a retrograde orbit from the large reservoir available in its neighbourhoods as the result of the interaction with its companion NGC 5713, and subsequently fuelled the in situ formation of the counter-rotating stellar disc.
We present constraints on the stellar-mass distribution of distant galaxies. These stellar-mass estimates derive from fitting population-synthesis models to the galaxies observed multi-band spectrophotometry. We discuss the complex uncertainties (both statistical and systematic) that are inherent to this method, and offer future prospects to improve the constraints. Typical uncertainties for galaxies at z ~ 2.5 are ~ 0.3 dex (statistical), and factors of ~ 3 (systematic). By applying this method to a catalog of NICMOS-selected galaxies in the Hubble Deep Field North, we generally find a lack of high-redshift galaxies (z > 2) with masses comparable to those of present-day ``L* galaxies. At z < 1.8, galaxies with L*-sized masses do emerge, but with a number density below that at the present epoch. Thus, it seems massive, present-day galaxies were not fully assembled by z ~ 2.5, and that further star formation and/or merging are required to assemble them from these high-redshift progenitors. Future progress on this subject will greatly benefit from upcoming surveys such as those planned with HST/ACS and SIRTF.