The expected abundance of Lyman-$α$ emitting primeval galaxies. I. General model predictions

Abstract

We present model calculations for the expected surface density of Ly-$α$ emitting primeval galaxies (PGs) at high redshifts. We assume that elliptical galaxies and bulges of spiral galaxies (= spheroids) formed early in the universe and that the Ly-$α$ emitting PGs are these spheroids during their first burst of star formation at high redshift. One of the main assumptions of the models is that the Ly-$α$ bright phase of this first starburst in the spheroids is confined to a short period after its onset due to rapid formation of dust. The models do not only explain the failure of early surveys for Ly-$α$ emitting PGs but are also consistent with the limits of new surveys (e.g. the Calar Alto Deep Imaging Survey - CADIS). At faint detection limits $S_{lim} \le 10^{-20}$W/m$^2$ the surface density of Ly-$α$ emitters is expected to vary only weakly in the redshift range between $z=3$ and $z=6$ with values $> 10^3 / {deg}^2 / Δz = 0.1 $ reaching its maximum at $z_0 \approx 4$. At shallower detection limits, $S_{lim} \ge 3\times 10^{-20}$W/m$^2$ the surface density of high-z Ly-$α$ emitters is expected to be a steep function of redshift and detection limit. This explains the low success in finding bright Ly-$α$ galaxies at $z > 5$. We demonstrate how the observed surface densities of Ly-$α$ emitting PGs derived from recent surveys constrain the parameters of our models. Finally, we discuss the possibility that two Ly-$α$ bright phases occur in the formation process of galaxies: An initial -- primeval -- phase in which dust is virtually non-existing, and a secondary later phase in which strong galactic winds as observed in some Lyman break galaxies facilitate the escape of Ly-$α$ photons after dust has already been formed.