The Gas-phase Mass–Metallicity Relation for Massive Galaxies at z ∼ 0.7 with the LEGA-C Survey
The massive end of the gas-phase mass–metallicity relation (MZR) is a sensitive probe of active galactic nuclei (AGN) feedback that is a crucial but highly uncertain component of galaxy evolution models. In this paper, we extend the z ∼ 0.7 MZR by ∼0.5 dex up to log ( M _⋆ / M _⊙ ) ∼ 11.1. We use ex...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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IOP Publishing
2024-01-01
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| Series: | The Astrophysical Journal |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ad250c |
| _version_ | 1797261495072980992 |
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| author | Zach J. Lewis Brett H. Andrews Rachel Bezanson Michael Maseda Eric F. Bell Romeel Davé Francesco D’Eugenio Marijn Franx Anna Gallazzi Anna de Graaff Yasha Kaushal Angelos Nersesian Jeffrey A. Newman Arjen van der Wel Po-Feng Wu |
| author_facet | Zach J. Lewis Brett H. Andrews Rachel Bezanson Michael Maseda Eric F. Bell Romeel Davé Francesco D’Eugenio Marijn Franx Anna Gallazzi Anna de Graaff Yasha Kaushal Angelos Nersesian Jeffrey A. Newman Arjen van der Wel Po-Feng Wu |
| author_sort | Zach J. Lewis |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The massive end of the gas-phase mass–metallicity relation (MZR) is a sensitive probe of active galactic nuclei (AGN) feedback that is a crucial but highly uncertain component of galaxy evolution models. In this paper, we extend the z ∼ 0.7 MZR by ∼0.5 dex up to log ( M _⋆ / M _⊙ ) ∼ 11.1. We use extremely deep VLT VIMOS spectra from the Large Early Galaxy Astrophysics Census (LEGA-C) survey to measure metallicities for 145 galaxies. The LEGA-C MZR matches the normalization of the z ∼ 0.8 DEEP2 MZR where they overlap, so we combine the two to create an MZR spanning from 9.3 to 11.1 log ( M _⋆ / M _⊙ ). The LEGA-C+DEEP2 MZR at z ∼ 0.7 is offset to slightly lower metallicities (0.05–0.13 dex) than the z ∼ 0 MZR, but it otherwise mirrors the established power-law rise at low/intermediate stellar masses and asymptotic flattening at high stellar masses. We compare the LEGA-C+DEEP2 MZR to the MZR from two cosmological simulations (IllustrisTNG and SIMBA), which predict qualitatively different metallicity trends for high-mass galaxies. This comparison highlights that our extended MZR provides a crucial observational constraint for galaxy evolution models in a mass regime where the MZR is very sensitive to choices about the implementation of AGN feedback. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-24T23:42:07Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-38ffa91a9ea6423f8c87b4f6ffde921a |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1538-4357 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-24T23:42:07Z |
| publishDate | 2024-01-01 |
| publisher | IOP Publishing |
| record_format | Article |
| series | The Astrophysical Journal |
| spelling | doaj.art-38ffa91a9ea6423f8c87b4f6ffde921a2024-03-15T11:02:19ZengIOP PublishingThe Astrophysical Journal1538-43572024-01-0196415910.3847/1538-4357/ad250cThe Gas-phase Mass–Metallicity Relation for Massive Galaxies at z ∼ 0.7 with the LEGA-C SurveyZach J. Lewis0Brett H. Andrews1https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8085-5890Rachel Bezanson2https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5063-8254Michael Maseda3https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0695-4414Eric F. Bell4https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5564-9873Romeel Davé5https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2842-9434Francesco D’Eugenio6https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2388-8172Marijn Franx7https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8871-3026Anna Gallazzi8https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9656-1800Anna de Graaff9https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2380-9801Yasha Kaushal10https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4382-4467Angelos Nersesian11https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6843-409XJeffrey A. Newman12https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8684-2222Arjen van der Wel13https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5027-0135Po-Feng Wu14https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9665-0440Department of Physics and Astronomy and PITT PACC, University of Pittsburgh , Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA; Department of Astronomy, University of Wisconsin-Madison , Madison, WI 53706, USADepartment of Physics and Astronomy and PITT PACC, University of Pittsburgh , Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USADepartment of Physics and Astronomy and PITT PACC, University of Pittsburgh , Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USADepartment of Astronomy, University of Wisconsin-Madison , Madison, WI 53706, USADepartment of Astronomy, University of Michigan , 1085 South University Avenue, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1107, USAInstitute for Astronomy, Royal Observatory, University of Edinburgh , Edinburgh EH9 3HJ, UK; Department of Physics & Astronomy, University of the Western Cape , Robert Sobukwe Road, Bellville, 7535, South AfricaKavli Institute for Cosmology, University of Cambridge , Madingley Road, Cambridge CB3 0HA, UK; Cavendish Laboratory, University of Cambridge , 19 JJ Thomson Avenue, Cambridge CB3 0HE, UKLeiden Observatory, Leiden University , P.O. Box 9513, 2300 RA, Leiden, The NetherlandsINAF-Osservatorio Astrofisico di Arcetri , Largo Enrico Fermi 5, I-50125 Firenze, ItalyLeiden Observatory, Leiden University , P.O. Box 9513, NL-2300 AA Leiden, The NetherlandsDepartment of Physics and Astronomy and PITT PACC, University of Pittsburgh , Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USASterrenkundig Observatorium, Universiteit Gent , Krijgslaan 281 S9, B-9000 Gent, BelgiumDepartment of Physics and Astronomy and PITT PACC, University of Pittsburgh , Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USASterrenkundig Observatorium, Universiteit Gent , Krijgslaan 281 S9, B-9000 Gent, Belgium; Max-Planck-Institut für Astronomie , Königstuhl 17, D-69117 Heidelberg, GermanyNational Astronomical Observatory of Japan , Osawa 2-21-1, Mitaka, Tokyo 181-8588, JapanThe massive end of the gas-phase mass–metallicity relation (MZR) is a sensitive probe of active galactic nuclei (AGN) feedback that is a crucial but highly uncertain component of galaxy evolution models. In this paper, we extend the z ∼ 0.7 MZR by ∼0.5 dex up to log ( M _⋆ / M _⊙ ) ∼ 11.1. We use extremely deep VLT VIMOS spectra from the Large Early Galaxy Astrophysics Census (LEGA-C) survey to measure metallicities for 145 galaxies. The LEGA-C MZR matches the normalization of the z ∼ 0.8 DEEP2 MZR where they overlap, so we combine the two to create an MZR spanning from 9.3 to 11.1 log ( M _⋆ / M _⊙ ). The LEGA-C+DEEP2 MZR at z ∼ 0.7 is offset to slightly lower metallicities (0.05–0.13 dex) than the z ∼ 0 MZR, but it otherwise mirrors the established power-law rise at low/intermediate stellar masses and asymptotic flattening at high stellar masses. We compare the LEGA-C+DEEP2 MZR to the MZR from two cosmological simulations (IllustrisTNG and SIMBA), which predict qualitatively different metallicity trends for high-mass galaxies. This comparison highlights that our extended MZR provides a crucial observational constraint for galaxy evolution models in a mass regime where the MZR is very sensitive to choices about the implementation of AGN feedback.https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ad250cGalaxy abundancesMetallicityGalaxy evolution |
| spellingShingle | Zach J. Lewis Brett H. Andrews Rachel Bezanson Michael Maseda Eric F. Bell Romeel Davé Francesco D’Eugenio Marijn Franx Anna Gallazzi Anna de Graaff Yasha Kaushal Angelos Nersesian Jeffrey A. Newman Arjen van der Wel Po-Feng Wu The Gas-phase Mass–Metallicity Relation for Massive Galaxies at z ∼ 0.7 with the LEGA-C Survey The Astrophysical Journal Galaxy abundances Metallicity Galaxy evolution |
| title | The Gas-phase Mass–Metallicity Relation for Massive Galaxies at z ∼ 0.7 with the LEGA-C Survey |
| title_full | The Gas-phase Mass–Metallicity Relation for Massive Galaxies at z ∼ 0.7 with the LEGA-C Survey |
| title_fullStr | The Gas-phase Mass–Metallicity Relation for Massive Galaxies at z ∼ 0.7 with the LEGA-C Survey |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Gas-phase Mass–Metallicity Relation for Massive Galaxies at z ∼ 0.7 with the LEGA-C Survey |
| title_short | The Gas-phase Mass–Metallicity Relation for Massive Galaxies at z ∼ 0.7 with the LEGA-C Survey |
| title_sort | gas phase mass metallicity relation for massive galaxies at z ∼ 0 7 with the lega c survey |
| topic | Galaxy abundances Metallicity Galaxy evolution |
| url | https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ad250c |
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