The Mid-Infrared Color-Luminosity Relation and the Local 12 micron Luminosity Function

Abstract

We have established a model to systematically estimate the contribution of the mid-infrared emission features between 3 and 11.6 micron to the IRAS in-band fluxes, using the results of ISO PHT-S observation of 16 galaxies by Lu et al. (1997). The model is used to estimate more properly the k-corrections for calculating the restframe 12 and 25 micron fluxes and luminosities of IRAS galaxies. We have studied the 12-25 micron color-luminosity relation for a sample of galaxies selected at 25 microns. The color is found to correlate well with the 25 micron luminosity, the far-infrared and the blue luminosities. The relations with the mid-infrared luminosities are more sensitive to different populations of galaxies, while a single relation of the 12-25 micron color vs. the ratio of the far-infrared and the blue luminosities applies equally well to these different populations. The luminous and ultraluminous infrared galaxies have redder 12-25 micron colors than those of the quasars. These relations provide powerful tools to differentiate different populations of galaxies. We have also selected a sample of 668 galaxies from the IRAS Faint Source Survey flux-density limited at 200 mJy at 12 microns. A 12 micron local luminosity function is derived and, for the first time in the literature, effects of density variation in the local universe are considered and corrected in the calculation of the 12 micron luminosity function. It is also found that the 12 micron-selected sample are dominated by quasars and active galaxies, which therefore strongly affect the 12 micron luminosity function at high luminosities. The ultraluminous infrared galaxies are relatively rare at 12 micron comparing with a 25 micron sample.