Calibrating non-parametric morphological indicators from {\it JWST} images for galaxies over $0.5<z<3$

Abstract

The measurements of morphological indicators of galaxies are often influenced by a series of observational effects. In this study, we utilize a sample of over 800 TNG50 simulated galaxies with log($M_*$/M$_\odot$)$>9$ at $0.5 1$\,$\mu$m. The morphological indicators of star-forming galaxies (SFGs) and quiescent galaxies (QGs) are significantly different. The morphologies of QGs exhibit a higher sensitivity to rest-frame wavelength than SFGs. After analyzing the evolution of morphological indicators in the rest-frame V-band (0.5-0.7\,$\mu$m) and rest-frame J-band (1.1-1.4\,$\mu$m), we find that the morphologies of QGs evolve substantially with both redshift and stellar mass. For SFGs, the $C$, $Gini$ and $M_{\rm 20}$ show a rapid evolution with stellar mass at log($M_*$/M$_\odot$)$\geq10.5$, while the $A_{\rm O}$, $D_{\rm O}$ and $A$ evolve with both redshift and stellar mass. Our comparison shows that TNG50 simulations effectively reproduce the morphological indicators we measured from {\it JWST} observations when the impact of dust attenuation is considered.