No Arabic abstract
The apparent discrepancy between low and high D abundances derived from QSO spectra may be caused by spatial correlations in the stochastic velocity field. If one accounts for such correlations, one finds good agreement between different observations and the theoretical predictions for standard big bang nucleosynthesis (SBBN). In particular, we show that the H+D Ly-alpha profile observed at z = 0.7 toward Q1718+4807 is compatible with 4.1*10^{-5} <= D/H <= 4.7*10^{-5}. This result is consistent with our previous D/H determination for the z = 2.504 system toward Q1009+2956 and, thus, supports SBBN.
Deuterium abundance re-measurements by Burles and Tytler (1998; hereafter BT) yielded D/H = (3.3 +/- 0.3) 10^{-5} and the robust upper limit D/H < 3.9 10^{-5} from the z_a = 3.572 system toward Q1937-1009. In this new analysis BT adopted multicomponent microturbulent models together with the possibility to vary freely the local continuum level around each HI line to improve the fit. The procedure failed, however, to fit adequately D Ly-beta without recourse to an additional H Ly-alpha contamination at the position of D Ly-beta. We show that this obstacle may be successfully overcome within the framework of the mesoturbulent model accounting (in contrast to the microturbulent approximation) for a correlated structure of the large scale velocity field. Using the same observational data and the original continuum as determined by Tytler et al. (1996), we obtained good fits. The one-component mesoturbulent models provide D/H in the range (3.2 - 4.8) 10^{-5} and the total hydrogen column density N(HI) = (5.6 - 7.0) 10^{17} cm^{-2}. This result is consistent with that found by us from the z_a = 2.504 and z_a = 0.701 systems toward Q1009+2956 and Q1718+4807, respectively. The range for D/H common to all three analyses is D/H = (4.1 - 4.6) 10^{-5}. This value is consistent with standard big bang nucleosynthesis [SBBN] if the baryon-to-photon ratio, eta, is in the range 4.2 10^{-10} <= eta <= 4.6 10^{-10}, implying 0.0155 <= Omega_b h^2_{100} <= 0.0167.
We report a further analysis of the ratio of deuterium to hydrogen (D/H) using HST spectra of the z=0.701 Lyman limit system towards the QSO PG1718+481. Initial analyses of this absorber found it gave a high D/H value, 1.8 - 3.1 times 10^{-4} (Webb et al. 1998), inconsistent with several higher redshift measurements. It is thus important to critically examine this measurement. By analysing the velocity widths of the DI, HI and metal lines present in this system, Kirkman et al. (2001) report that the additional absorption in the blue wing of the lya line can not be DI, with a confidence level of 98%. Here we present a more detailed analysis, taking into account possible wavelength shifts between the three sets of HST spectra used in the analysis. We find that the constraints on this system are not as strong as those claimed by Kirkman et al. The discrepancy between the parameters of the blue wing absorption and the parameters expected for DI is marginally worse than 1 sigma. Tytler et al.(1999) commented on the first analysis of Webb et al.(1997,1998), reporting the presence of a contaminating lower redshift Lyman limit system, with log[N(HI)] = 16.7 at z=0.602, which biases the N(HI) estimate for the main system. Here we show that this absorber actually has log[N(HI)] < 14.6 and does not impact on the estimate of N(HI) in the system of interest at z = 0.701. The purpose of the present paper is to highlight important aspects of the analysis which were not explored in previous studies, and hence help refine the methods used in future analyses of D/H in quasar spectra.
The ISM metallicity and the stellar mass are examined in a sample of 66 galaxies at 0.4<z<1, selected from the Gemini Deep Deep Survey (GDDS) and the Canada-France Redshift Survey (CFRS). We observe a mass-metallicity relation similar to that seen in z~0.1 SDSS galaxies, but displaced towards higher masses and/or lower metallicities. Using this sample, and a small sample of z~2.3 LBGs, a redshift dependent mass-metallicity relation is proposed which describes the observed results.
We report on the detection of a z_gal=0.101 galaxy projected on the sky at 4.2 arcsec (or 5.2 h^{-1} kpc for q_o=0.5) from the quasar Q 0439-433 (z_em=0.594). The HST spectrum of the quasar shows strong MgII, FeII, SiII, AlII and CIV absorption lines at the same redshift as the galaxy. The equivalent width ratios of the low ionization lines indicate that this system is probably damped with a neutral hydrogen column density of N_HI~10^{20}cm^{-2}. The CIV doublet presents a complex structure, and in particular a satellite with a velocity v=1100km/s relative to the galaxy. Additional HST and redshifted 21cm observations of this QSO-galaxy pair would offer an ideal opportunity to study the morphology of a damped absorber and the kinematics of the halo of a low-redshift galaxy.
We compare the surface brightness-inclination relation for a sample of COSMOS pure disk galaxies at z~0.7 with an artificially redshifted sample of SDSS disks well matched to the COSMOS sample in terms of rest-frame photometry and morphology, as well as their selection and analysis. The offset between the average surface brightness of face-on and edge-on disks in the redshifted SDSS sample matches that predicted by measurements of the optical depth of galactic disks in the nearby universe. In contrast, large disks at z~0.7 have a virtually flat surface brightness-inclination relation, suggesting that they are more opaque than their local counterparts. This could be explained by either an increased amount of optically thick material in disks at higher redshift, or a different spatial distribution of the dust.