We present a submillimetre survey of seven high-z galaxy clusters (0.64<z<1.0) using the Submillimetre Common-User Bolometer Array (SCUBA) at 850 and 450 um. The targets, of similar richness and redshift, are selected from the Red-sequence Cluster Su
rvey (RCS). We use this sample to investigate the apparent excess of submillimetre source counts in the direction of cluster fields compared to blank fields. The sample consists of three galaxy clusters that exhibit multiple optical arcs due to strong gravitational lensing, and a control group of four clusters with no apparent strong lensing. A tentative excess of 2.7-sigma is seen in the number density of submillimetre luminous galaxies (SMGs) within the lensing cluster fields compared to that in the control group. Ancillary observations at radio, mid-infrared, optical, and X-ray wavelengths allow for the identification of counterparts to many of the SMGs. Utilizing photometric redshifts, we conclude that at least three of the galaxies within the lensing fields have redshifts consistent with the clusters and implied infrared luminosities of ~10^12 Lsol. The existence of SMG cluster members may therefore be boosting source counts in the lensing cluster fields, which might be an effect of the dynamical state of those clusters. However, we find that the removal of potential cluster members from the counts analysis does not entirely eliminate the difference between the cluster samples. We also investigate possible occurrences of lensing between background SMGs and lower-z optical galaxies, though further observations are required to make any conclusive claims. Although the excess counts between the two cluster samples have not been unambiguously accounted for, these results warrant caution for interpreting submillimetre source counts in cluster fields and point source contamination for Sunyaev-Zeldovich surveys. [Abridged]
We present the results of a Spitzer IRAC and MIPS 24 micron study of extended Lyman-alpha clouds (or Lyman-alpha Blobs, LABs) within the SSA22 filamentary structure at z = 3.09. We detect 6/26 LABs in all IRAC filters, four of which are also detected
at 24 micron, and find good correspondence with the 850 micron measurements of Geach et al. 2005. An analysis of the rest-frame ultraviolet, optical, near- and mid-infrared colors reveals that these six systems exhibit signs of nuclear activity (AGN)and/or extreme star formation. Notably, they have properties that bridge galaxies dominated by star formation (Lyman-break galaxies; LBGs) and those with AGNs (LBGs classified as QSOs). The LAB systems not detected in all four IRAC bands, on the other hand, are, as a group, consistent with pure star forming systems, similar to the majority of the LBGs within the filament. These results indicate that the galaxies within LABs do not comprise a homogeneous population, though they are also consistent with scenarios in which the gas halos are ionized through a common mechanism such as galaxy-scale winds driven by the galaxies within them, or gravitational heating of the collapsing cloud itself.
