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arXiv · 2308.11392

Rest-Frame Near-Infrared Radial Light Profiles up to z=3 from JWST/NIRCam: Wavelength Dependence of the S\'ersic Index

Marco Martorano·Arjen van der Wel·Eric F. Bell·Marijn Franx·Katherine E. Whitaker·Angelos Nersesian·Sedona H. Price·Maarten Baes·Katherine A. Suess·Erica J. Nelson·Tim B. Miller·Rachel Bezanson·Gabriel Brammer
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Abstract

We examine the wavelength dependence of radial light profiles based on S\'ersic index $n$ measurements of 1067 galaxies with M$_*\geq$ 10$^{9.5}$M$_\odot$ and in the redshift range $0.5 < z < 3$. The sample and rest-frame optical light profiles are drawn from CANDELS$+$3D-HST; rest-frame near-infrared light profiles are inferred from CEERS JWST/NIRCam imaging. $n$ shows only weak dependence on wavelength, regardless of redshift, galaxy mass and type: on average, star-forming galaxies have $n = 1-1.5$ and quiescent galaxies have $n = 3-4$ in the rest-frame optical and near-infrared. The strong correlation at all wavelengths between $n$ and star-formation activity implies a physical connection between the radial stellar mass profile and star-formation activity. The main caveat is that the current sample is too small to discern trends for the most massive galaxies (M$_* > 10^{11}M_\odot$).

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Marco Martorano, Arjen van der Wel, Eric F. Bell, Marijn Franx, Katherine E. Whitaker, Angelos Nersesian, Sedona H. Price, Maarten Baes, Katherine A. Suess, Erica J. Nelson, Tim B. Miller, Rachel Bezanson, Gabriel Brammer. 2023-08-22. Rest-Frame Near-Infrared Radial Light Profiles up to z=3 from JWST/NIRCam: Wavelength Dependence of the S\'ersic Index. https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357%2Facf716

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