No Arabic abstract
We have examined some basic properties of damped Ly$alpha$ systems(DLAs) by semi-analytic model. We assume that DLA hosts are disk galaxies whose mass function is generated by Press-Schechter formulism at redshift 3. Star formation and chemical evolution undergo in the disc. We select modelled DLAs according to their observational criterion by Monte Carlo simulation using random line of sights and disk inclinations. The DLA ages are set to be 1 to 3 Gyr. By best-fitting the predicted metallicity distribution to the observed ones, we get the effective yield for DLAs about $0.25Z_{odot}$. On the basis of this constrain, we further compared our model predictions with observations at redshift 3 in the following items: number density; gas content; HI frequency distribution; star formation rate density; relationship between metallicity and HI column density. We found that the predicted number density at redshift 3 agree well with the observed value, but the gas content $Omega_{DLA}$ is about 3 times larger than observed since our model predicts more DLA systems with higher column density. The frequency distribution at higher HI column density is quite consistent with observation while some difference exists at lower HI end. The predicted star formation rate density contributed by DLAs is consistent with the most recent observations. Meanwhile, the connection between DLAs and Lyman Break galaxies(LBGs) is discussed by comparing their UV luminosity functions which shows that the DLAs host galaxies are much fainter than LBGs. However, there is a discrepancy between model prediction and observation in the correlation between metallicity and HI column density for DLAs. Further investigations are needed for the star formation mode at high redshift environments.
In a Universe where AGN feedback regulates star formation in massive galaxies, a strong correlation between these two quantities is expected. If the gas causing star formation is also responsible for feeding the central black hole, then a positive correlation is expected. If powerful AGNs are responsible for the star formation quenching, then a negative correlation is expected. Observations so far have mainly found a mild correlation or no correlation at all (i.e. a flat relation between star formation rate (SFR) and AGN luminosity), raising questions about the whole paradigm of AGN feedback. In this paper, we report the predictions of the GALFORM semi-analytical model, which has a very strong coupling between AGN activity and quenching of star formation. The predicted SFR-AGN luminosity correlation appears negative in the low AGN luminosity regime, where AGN feedback acts, but becomes strongly positive in the regime of the brightest AGN. Our predictions reproduce reasonably well recent observations by Rosario et al., yet there is some discrepancy in the normalisation of the correlation at low luminosities and high redshifts. Though this regime could be strongly influenced by observational biases, we argue that the disagreement could be ascribed to the fact that GALFORM neglects AGN variability effects. Interestingly, the galaxies that dominate the regime where the observations imply a weak correlation are massive early-type galaxies that are subject to AGN feedback. Nevertheless, these galaxies retain high enough molecular hydrogen contents to maintain relatively high star formation rates and strong infrared emission.
I review the observational characteristics of intermediate-to-high redshift star forming galaxies, including their star formation rates, dust extinctions, ISM kinematics, and chemical compositions. I present evidence that the mean rate of metal enrichment, Delta{Z}/Delta{z}, from z=0--3, as determined from nebular oxygen abundance measurements in star forming galaxies, is 0.15 dex per redshift unit for galaxies more luminous than M_B=-20.5. This rate of chemical enrichment is consistent with the chemical rise in Galactic disk stars. It is less dramatic than, but perhaps consistent with, the enrichment rate of 0.18--0.26+/-0.07 dex per redshift unit seen in Damped Ly alpha systems, and it is much less than predicted by many cosmological evolution models. The high-redshift galaxies observed to date are the most luminous examples from those epochs, and thus, trace only the greatest cosmological overdensities. Star formation in the first 1-2 Gyr appears sufficient to elevate ambient metallicities to near or above the solar value, implying efficient production and retention of metals in these densest environments.
We implement a sample-efficient method for rapid and accurate emulation of semi-analytical galaxy formation models over a wide range of model outputs. We use ensembled deep learning algorithms to produce a fast emulator of an updated version of the GALFORM model from a small number of training examples. We use the emulator to explore the models parameter space, and apply sensitivity analysis techniques to better understand the relative importance of the model parameters. We uncover key tensions between observational datasets by applying a heuristic weighting scheme in a Markov chain Monte Carlo framework and exploring the effects of requiring improved fits to certain datasets relative to others. Furthermore, we demonstrate that this method can be used to successfully calibrate the model parameters to a comprehensive list of observational constraints. In doing so, we re-discover previous GALFORM fits in an automatic and transparent way, and discover an improved fit by applying a heavier weighting to the fit to the metallicities of early-type galaxies. The deep learning emulator requires a fraction of the model evaluations needed in similar emulation approaches, achieving an out-of-sample mean absolute error at the knee of the K-band luminosity function of 0.06 dex with less than 1000 model evaluations. We demonstrate that this is an extremely efficient, inexpensive and transparent way to explore multi-dimensional parameter spaces, and can be applied more widely beyond semi-analytical galaxy formation models.
A semi-analytic model is proposed that couples the Press-Schechter formalism for the number of galaxies with a prescription for galaxy-galaxy interactions that enables to follow the evolution of galaxy morphologies along the Hubble sequence. Within this framework, we calculate the chemo-spectrophotometric evolution of galaxies to obtain spectral energy distributions. We find that such an approach is very successful in reproducing the statistical properties of galaxies as well as their time evolution. We are able to make predictions as a function of galaxy type: for clarity, we restrict ourselves to two categories of galaxies: early and late types that are identified with ellipticals and disks. In our model, irregulars are simply an early stage of galaxy formation. In particular, we obtain good matches for the galaxy counts and redshift distributions of sources from UV to submm wavelengths. We also reproduce the observed cosmic star formation history and the diffuse background radiation, and make predictions as to the epoch and wavelength at which the dust-shrouded star formation of spheroids begins to dominate over the star formation that occurs more quiescently in disks. A new prediction of our model is a rise in the FIR luminosity density with increasing redshift, peaking at about $zsim 3$, and with a ratio to the local luminosity density $rho_{L, u} (z = z_{peak})/ rho_{L, u} (z = 0)$ about 10 times higher than that in the blue (B-band) which peaks near $zsim 2$.
We compare the mean mass assembly histories of compact and fossil galaxy groups in the Millennium dark matter simulation and an associated semi-analytic galaxy formation model. Tracing the halo mass of compact groups (CGs) from z=0 to z=1 shows that, on average, 55 per cent of the halo mass in compact groups is assembled since z~1, compared to 40 per cent of the halo mass in fossil groups (FGs) in the same time interval, indicating that compared to FGs, CGs are relatively younger galaxy systems. At z=0, for a given halo mass, fossil groups tend to have a larger concentration than compact groups. Investigating the evolution of CGs parameters show that they become more compact with time. CGs at z=0.5 see their magnitude gaps increase exponentially, but it takes ~10 Gyr for them to reach a magnitude gap of 2 magnitudes. The slow growth of the magnitude gap leads to only a minority (~41 per cent) of CGs selected at z=0.5 turning into a FG by z=0. Also, while three-quarters of FGs go through a compact phase, most fail to meet the CG isolation criterion, leaving only ~30 per cent of FGs fully satisfying the CG selection criteria. Therefore, there is no strong link of CGs turning into FGs or FGs originating from CGs. The relation between CGs and FGs is thus more complex, and in most cases, FGs and CGs follow different evolutionary tracks.