arXiv subjects

C. Adami

Publications and source records attributed to C. Adami.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2019

The VIMOS Public Extragalactic Redshift Survey (VIPERS) -- Environment-size relation of massive passive galaxies at 0.5 < z < 0.8

We use the statistics of the VIPERS survey to investigate the relation between the surface mean stellar mass density Sigma=Mstar/(2*pi*Re^2) of massive passive galaxies (MPGs, Mstar>10^11 Msun) and their environment in the redshift range 0.5 2*10^11 Msun, we find an excess of MPGs with low Sigma and a deficit of high-Sigma MPGs in the densest regions wrt other environments. We interpret this result as due to the migration of some high-Sigma MPGs (<1% of the total population of MPGs) into low-Sigma MPGs, probably through mergers or cannibalism of small satellites. In summary, our results imply that the accretion of satellite galaxies has a marginal role in the mass-assembly history of most MPGs. We have previously found that the number density of VIPERS massive star-forming galaxies (MSFGs) declines rapidily from z=0.8 to z=0.5, which mirrors the rapid increase in the number density of MPGs. This indicates that the MSFGs at z>0.8 migrate to the MPG population. Here, we investigate the Sigma-delta relation of MSFGs at z>0.8 and find that it is consistent within 1 sigma with that of low-Sigma MPGs at z<0.8. Thus, the results of this and our previous paper show that MSFGs at z>0.8 are consistent in terms of number and environment with being the progenitors of low-Sigma MPGs at z<0.8.

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arXiv2019

Euclid preparation III. Galaxy cluster detection in the wide photometric survey, performance and algorithm selection

Galaxy cluster counts in bins of mass and redshift have been shown to be a competitive probe to test cosmological models. This method requires an efficient blind detection of clusters from surveys with a well-known selection function and robust mass estimates. The Euclid wide survey will cover 15000 deg$^2$ of the sky in the optical and near-infrared bands, down to magnitude 24 in the $H$-band. The resulting data will make it possible to detect a large number of galaxy clusters spanning a wide-range of masses up to redshift $\sim 2$. This paper presents the final results of the Euclid Cluster Finder Challenge (CFC). The objective of these challenges was to select the cluster detection algorithms that best meet the requirements of the Euclid mission. The final CFC included six independent detection algorithms, based on different techniques, such as photometric redshift tomography, optimal filtering, hierarchical approach, wavelet and friend-of-friends algorithms. These algorithms were blindly applied to a mock galaxy catalog with representative Euclid-like properties. The relative performance of the algorithms was assessed by matching the resulting detections to known clusters in the simulations. Several matching procedures were tested, thus making it possible to estimate the associated systematic effects on completeness to $<3$%. All the tested algorithms are very competitive in terms of performance, with three of them reaching $>80$% completeness for a mean purity of 80% down to masses of $10^{14}$ M$_{\odot}$ and up to redshift $z=2$. Based on these results, two algorithms were selected to be implemented in the Euclid pipeline, the AMICO code, based on matched filtering, and the PZWav code, based on an adaptive wavelet approach. [abridged]

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arXiv2019

The complex case of MACSJ0717.5+3745 and its extended filament: intra-cluster light, galaxy luminosity function, and galaxy orientations

The properties of galaxies are known to be affected by their environment, but although galaxies in clusters and groups have been quite thoroughly investigated, little is known presently on galaxies belonging to filaments of the cosmic web, and on the properties of the filaments themselves. We investigate here the properties of the rich cluster MACSJ0717.5+3745 and its extended filament, by analyzing the distribution and fractions of intra-cluster light (ICL) in the core of this cluster and by trying to detect intra-filament light (IFL) in the filament. We analyze the galaxy luminosity function (GLF) of the cluster core and of the filament. We also study the orientations of galaxies in the filament to better constrain the filament properties. This work is based on Hubble Space Telescope archive data, both from the Hubble Frontier Fields in the F435W, F606W, F814W, and F105W bands, and from a mosaic of images in the F606W and F814W bands. The spatial distribution of the ICL is determined with our new wavelet-based software, DAWIS. The GLFs are extracted in the F606W and F814W bands, with a statistical subtraction of the background, and fit with Schechter functions. The galaxy orientations in the filaments are estimated with SExtractor after correction for the Point Spread Function. We detect a large amount of ICL in the cluster core, but no IFL in the cosmic filament. The fraction of ICL in the core peaks in the F606W filter before decreasing with wavelength. Though quite noisy, the GLFs in the filament are notably different from those of field galaxies, with a flatter faint end slope and an excess of bright galaxies. We do not detect a significant alignment of the galaxies in the filament region that was analyzed.

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arXiv2019

The XXL Survey: XXXVII. The role of the environment in shaping the stellar population properties of galaxies at 0.1<z<0.5

Exploiting a sample of galaxies drawn from the XXL-N multiwavelength survey, we present an analysis of the stellar population properties of galaxies at 0.1<z<0.5, by studying galaxy fractions and the star formation rate (SFR)-stellar mass(M) relation. Furthermore, we exploit and compare two parametrisations of environment. When adopting a definition of "global" environment, we consider separately cluster virial/outer members and field galaxies. When considering the "local" environment, we take into account the projected number density of galaxies in a fixed aperture of 1Mpc in the sky. We find that regardless of the environmental definition adopted, the fraction of blue/star-forming galaxies is the highest in the field/least dense regions and the lowest in the virial regions of clusters/highest densities. Furthermore, the fraction of star-forming galaxies is higher than the fraction of blue galaxies, regardless of the environment. This result is particularly evident in the virial cluster regions, most likely reflecting the different star formation histories of galaxies in different environments. Also the overall SFR-M relation does not seem to depend on the parametrisation adopted. Nonetheless, the two definitions of environment lead to different results as far as the fraction of galaxies in transition between the star-forming main sequence and the quenched regime is concerned. In fact, using the local environment the fraction of galaxies below the main sequence is similar at low and high densities, whereas in clusters (and especially within the virial radii) a population with reduced SFR with respect to the field is observed. Our results show that the two parametrisations adopted to describe the environment have different physical meanings, i.e.are intrinsically related to different physical processes acting on galaxy populations and are able to probe different physical scales.

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arXiv2018

The VIMOS Public Extragalactic Redshift Survey (VIPERS). Unsupervised classification with photometric redshifts: a method to accurately classify large galaxy samples without spectroscopic information

Techniques to classify galaxies solely based on photometry will be necessary for future large cosmology missions, such as Euclid or LSST. However, the precision of classification is always lower in photometric surveys and can be systematically biased with respect to classifications based upon spectroscopic data. We verified how precisely the detailed classification scheme introduced by Siudek et al. (2018, hereafter: S1) for galaxies at z~0.7 could be reproduced if only photometric data are available. We applied the Fisher Expectation-Maximization (FEM) unsupervised clustering algorithm to 54,293 VIPERS galaxies working in a parameter space of reliable photometric redshifts and 12 corresponding rest-frame magnitudes. The FEM algorithm distinguishes four main groups: (1) red, (2) green, (3) blue, and (4) outliers. Each group is further divided into 3, 3, 4, and 2 subclasses, respectively. The accuracy of reproducing galaxy classes using spectroscopic data is high: 92%, 84%, 96% for red, green, and blue classes, respectively, except for dusty star-forming galaxies. The presented verification of the photometric classification demonstrates that large photometric samples can be used to distinguish different galaxy classes at z > 0.5 with an accuracy provided so far only by spectroscopic data except for particular galaxy classes.

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arXiv2018

The VIMOS Public Extragalactic Redshift Survey (VIPERS). The complexity of galaxy populations at 0.4< z<1.3 revealed with unsupervised machine-learning algorithms

Various galaxy classification schemes have been developed so far to constrain the main physical processes regulating evolution of different galaxy types. In the era of a deluge of astrophysical information and recent progress in machine learning, a new approach to galaxy classification becomes imperative. We employ a Fisher Expectation-Maximization unsupervised algorithm working in a parameter space of 12 rest-frame magnitudes and spectroscopic redshift. The model (DBk) and the number of classes (12) were established based on the joint analysis of standard statistical criteria and confirmed by the analysis of the galaxy distribution with respect to a number of classes and their properties. This new approach allows us to classify galaxies based just on their redshifts and UV-NIR spectral energy distributions. The FEM unsupervised algorithm has automatically distinguished 12 classes: 11 classes of VIPERS galaxies and an additional class of broad-line AGNs. After a first broad division into blue, green and red categories we obtained a further sub-division into three red, three green, and five blue galaxy classes. The FEM classes follow the galaxy sequence from the earliest to the latest types that is reflected in their colours (which are constructed from rest-frame magnitudes used in classification procedure) but also their morphological, physical, and spectroscopic properties (not included in the classification scheme). We demonstrate that the members of each class share similar physical and spectral properties. In particular, we are able to find three different classes of red passive galaxy populations. Thus, we demonstrate the potential of an unsupervised approach to galaxy classification and we retrieve the complexity of galaxy populations at z~0.7, a task that usual simpler colour-based approaches cannot fulfil.

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arXiv2018

The link between brightest cluster galaxy properties and large scale extensions of 38 DAFT/FADA and CLASH clusters in the redshift range 0.2<z<0.9

In the context of large scale structure formation, clusters of galaxies are located at the nodes of the cosmic web, and continue to accrete galaxies and groups along filaments. They show sometimes a very large extension and a preferential direction. Brightest cluster galaxies (BCGs) are believed to grow through the accretion of many small galaxies, and their structural properties are expected to vary with redshift. In some cases BCGs show an orientation comparable to that of the cluster to which they belong. We analyse the morphological properties of 38 BCGs from the DAFT/FADA and CLASH surveys and compare the position angles of their major axes to the direction of the cluster elongation at Mpc scale. The morphological properties of the BCGs were studied by applying the GALFIT software to HST images and fitting the light distribution with one or two Sersic laws, or with a Nuker plus a Sersic law. The cluster elongations were estimated by computing density maps of red sequence galaxies. The analysis of the 38 BCGs shows that in 11 cases a single Sersic law is sufficient to account for the surface brightness, while for all the other clusters two laws are necessary. For the outer Sersic component, the effective radius increases with decreasing redshift, and the effective surface brightness decreases with effective radius, following the Kormendy law. An agreement between the major axis of the BCG and the cluster elongation at large scale within +-30 deg is found for 12 clusters out of the 21 for which both PAs can be defined. The variation with redshift of the effective radius of the outer Sersic component agrees with the growing of BCGs by accretion of smaller galaxies from z=0.9 to 0.2. The directions of the elongations of BCGs and of their host clusters and large scale structures agree for 12 objects out of 21, implying that a larger sample is necessary to reach more definite conclusions.

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arXiv2018

The XXL Survey XX: The 365 cluster catalogue

In the currently debated context of using clusters of galaxies as cosmological probes, the need for well-defined cluster samples is critical. The XXL Survey has been specifically designed to provide a well characterised sample of some 500 X-ray detected clusters suitable for cosmological studies. The main goal of present article is to make public and describe the properties of the cluster catalogue in its present state, as well as of associated catalogues as super-clusters and fossil groups. We release a sample containing 365 clusters in total. We give the details of the follow-up observations and explain the procedure adopted to validate the cluster spectroscopic redshifts. Considering the whole XXL cluster sample, we have provided two types of selection, both complete in a particular sense: one based on flux-morphology criteria, and an alternative based on the [0.5-2] keV flux within one arcmin of the cluster centre. We have also provided X-ray temperature measurements for 80$\%$ of the clusters having a flux larger than 9$\times$10$^{-15}$$\rm \thinspace erg \, s^{-1} \, cm^{-2}$. Our cluster sample extends from z$\sim$0 to z$\sim$1.2, with one cluster at z$\sim$2. Clusters were identified through a mean number of six spectroscopically confirmed cluster members. Our updated luminosity function and luminosity-temperature relation are compatible with our previous determinations based on the 100 brightest clusters, but show smaller uncertainties. We also present an enlarged list of super-clusters and a sample of 18 possible fossil groups. This intermediate publication is the last before the final release of the complete XXL cluster catalogue when the ongoing C2 cluster spectroscopic follow-up is complete. It provides a unique inventory of medium-mass clusters over a 50~\dd\ area out to z$\sim$1.

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arXiv2018

The XXL Survey: XXVII. The 3XLSS point source catalogue

We present the version of the point source catalogue of the XXL Survey that was used, in part, in the first series of XXL papers. In this paper we release, in our database in Milan and at CDS: (i) the X-ray source catalogue with 26056 objects in two areas of 25 deg2; (ii) the associated multiwavelength catalogues with candidate counterparts of the X-ray sources in the infrared, near-infrared, optical, and ultraviolet (plus spectroscopic redshift when available); and (iii) a catalogue of spectroscopic redshifts recently obtained in the southern XXL area. We also present the basic properties of the X-ray point sources and their counterparts. Other catalogues described in the second series of XXL papers will be released contextually, and will constitute the second XXL data release.

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arXiv2018

The XXL Survey XXV. Cosmological analysis of the C1 cluster number counts

Context. We present an estimation of cosmological parameters with clusters of galaxies. Aims. We constrain the $Ω_m$, $σ_8$, and $w$ parameters from a stand-alone sample of X-ray clusters detected in the 50 deg$^2$ XMM-XXL survey with a well-defined selection function. Methods. We analyse the redshift distribution of a sample comprising 178 high S/N clusters out to a redshift of unity. The cluster sample scaling relations are determined in a self-consistent manner. Results. In a lambda cold dark matter ($Λ$CDM) model, the cosmology favoured by the XXL clusters compares well with results derived from the Planck S-Z clusters for a totally different sample (mass/redshift range, selection biases, and scaling relations). However, with this preliminary sample and current mass calibration uncertainty, we find no inconsistency with the Planck CMB cosmology. If we relax the $w$ parameter, the Planck CMB uncertainties increase by a factor of $\sim$10 and become comparable with those from XXL clusters. Combining the two probes allows us to put constraints on $Ω_m$=0.316$\pm$0.060, $σ_8$=0.814$\pm$0.054, and $w$=-1.02$\pm$0.20. Conclusions. This first self-consistent cosmological analysis of a sample of serendipitous XMM clusters already provides interesting insights into the constraining power of the XXL survey. Subsequent analysis will use a larger sample extending to lower confidence detections and include additional observable information, potentially improving posterior uncertainties by roughly a factor of 3.

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arXiv2018

The XXL survey XXXV. The role of cluster mass in AGN activity

We present the results of a study of the AGN density in a homogeneous and well-studied sample of 167 bona fide X-ray galaxy clusters ($0.1 10^{42}$ erg cm$^{-1}$) in bright cluster galaxies, up to $6r_{500}$ radius. To study the mass dependence and the evolution of the AGN population, we further divided the sample into low- and high-mass clusters and two redshift bins (0.1-0.28 and 0.28-0.5). We detect a significant excess of X-ray AGNs, at the 95% confidence level, in low-mass clusters between $0.5r_{500}$ and 2$r_{500}$, which drops to the field value within the cluster cores ($r<0.5r_{500}$). In contrast, high-mass clusters present a decreasing AGN fraction towards the cluster centres. The high AGN fraction in the outskirts is caused by low-luminosity AGNs. It can be explained by a higher galaxy merging rate in low-mass clusters, where velocity dispersions are not high enough to prevent galaxy interactions and merging. Ram pressure stripping is possible in the cores of all our clusters, but probably stronger in deeper gravitational potentials. Compared with previous studies of massive or high-redshift clusters, we conclude that the AGN fraction in cluster galaxies anti-correlates strongly with cluster mass. The AGN fraction also increases with redshift, but at the same rate with the respective fraction in field galaxies.

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arXiv2018

The VIMOS Public Extragalactic Redshift Survey (VIPERS): Unbiased clustering estimate with VIPERS slit assignment

The VIPERS galaxy survey has measured the clustering of $0.5<z<1.2$ galaxies, enabling a number of measurements of galaxy properties and cosmological redshift-space distortions (RSD). Because the measurements were made using one-pass of the VIMOS instrument on the Very Large Telescope (VLT), the galaxies observed only represent approximately 47\% of the parent target sample, with a distribution imprinted with the pattern of the VIMOS slitmask. Correcting for the effect on clustering has previously been achieved using an approximate approach developed using mock catalogues. Pairwise inverse probability (PIP) weighting has recently been proposed by Bianchi & Percival to correct for missing galaxies, and we apply it to mock VIPERS catalogues to show that it accurately corrects the clustering for the VIMOS effects, matching the clustering measured from the observed sample to that of the parent. We then apply PIP-weighting to the VIPERS data, and fit the resulting monopole and quadrupole moments of the galaxy two-point correlation function with respect to the line-of-sight, making measurements of RSD. The results are close to previous measurements, showing that the previous approximate methods used by the VIPERS team are sufficient given the errors obtained on the RSD parameter.

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arXiv2018

The XXL Survey: XXXIV. Double irony in XXL-North. A tale of two radio galaxies in a supercluster at z = 0.14

We show how the XXL multiwavelength survey can be used to shed light on radio galaxies and their environment. Two prominent radio galaxies were identified in a visual examination of the mosaic of XXL-North obtained with the Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope at 610MHz. Counterparts were searched for in other bands. Spectroscopic redshifts from the GAMA database were used to identify clusters and/or groups of galaxies, estimate their masses with the caustic method, and quantify anisotropies in the surrounding galaxy distribution via a Fourier analysis. Both radio galaxies are of FR I type and are hosted by early-type galaxies at a redshift of 0.138. The first radio source, named the Exemplar, has a physical extent of about 400 kpc; it is located in the cluster XLSSC112, which has a temperature of about 2 keV, a total mass of about $10^{14} M_\odot$, and resides in an XXL supercluster with eight known members. The second source, named the Double Irony, is a giant radio galaxy with a total length of about 1.1 Mpc. Its core coincides with a cataloged point-like X-ray source, but no extended X-ray emission from a surrounding galaxy cluster was detected. However, from the optical data we determined that the host is the brightest galaxy in a group that is younger, less virialized, and less massive than the Exemplar's cluster. A friends-of-friends analysis showed that the Double Irony's group is a member of the same supercluster as the Exemplar. There are indications that the jets and plumes of the Double Irony have been deflected by gas associated with the surrounding galaxy distribution. Another overdensity of galaxies (the tenth) containing a radio galaxy was found to be associated with the supercluster. Radio galaxies can be used to find galaxy clusters/groups that are below the current sensitivity of X-ray surveys.

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arXiv2018

The XXL Survey: XVI. The clustering of X-ray selected galaxy clusters at z~0.3

Galaxy clusters trace the highest density peaks in the large-scale structure of the Universe. Their clustering provides a powerful probe that can be exploited in combination with cluster mass measurements to strengthen the cosmological constraints provided by cluster number counts. We investigate the spatial properties of a homogeneous sample of X-ray selected galaxy clusters from the XXL survey, the largest programme carried out by the XMM-Newton satellite. The measurements are compared to $Λ$-cold dark matter predictions, and used in combination with self-calibrated mass scaling relations to constrain the effective bias of the sample, $b_{eff}$, and the matter density contrast, $Ω_{\rm M}$. We measured the angle-averaged two-point correlation function of the XXL cluster sample. The analysed catalogue consists of $182$ X-ray selected clusters from the XXL second data release, with median redshift $\langle z \rangle=0.317$ and median mass $\langle M_{500} \rangle\simeq1.3\cdot10^{14} M_\odot$. A Markov chain Monte Carlo analysis is performed to extract cosmological constraints using a likelihood function constructed to be independent of the cluster selection function. Modelling the redshift-space clustering in the scale range $10<r\,[$\Mpch$]<40$, we obtain $Ω_{\rm M}=0.27_{-0.04}^{+0.06}$ and $b_{eff}=2.73_{-0.20}^{+0.18}$. This is the first time the two-point correlation function of an X-ray selected cluster catalogue at such relatively high redshifts and low masses has been measured. The XXL cluster clustering appears fully consistent with standard cosmological predictions. The analysis presented in this work demonstrates the feasibility of a cosmological exploitation of the XXL cluster clustering, paving the way for a combined analysis of XXL cluster number counts and clustering.

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arXiv2018

The XXL Survey XXVIII. Galaxy luminosity functions of the XXL-N clusters

The main goal of this study is to investigate the LF of a sample of 142 X-ray selected clusters, with spectroscopic redshift confirmation and a well defined selection function, spanning a wide redshift and mass range, and to test the LF dependence on cluster global properties, in a homogeneous and unbiased way. Our study is based on the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope Legacy Survey (CFHTLS) photometric galaxy catalogue,associated with photometric redshifts. We constructed LFs inside a scaled radius using a selection in photometric redshift around the cluster spectroscopic redshift in order to reduce projection effects. The width of the photometric redshift selection was carefully determined to avoid biasing the LF and depended on both the cluster redshift and the galaxy magnitudes. The purity was then enhanced by applying a precise background subtraction. We constructed composite luminosity functions (CLFs) by stacking the individual LFs and studied their evolution with redshift and richness, analysing separately the brightest cluster galaxy (BCG) and non-BCG members. We fitted the dependences of the CLFs and BCG distributions parameters with redshift and richness conjointly in order to distinguish between these two effects. We find that the usual photometric redshift selection methods can bias the LF estimate if the redshift and magnitude dependence of the photometric redshift quality is not taken into account. Our main findings concerning the evolution of the galaxy luminosity distribution with redshift and richness are that, in the inner region of clusters and in the redshift-mass range we probe (about $0<z<1$ and $10^{13} M_{\odot}<M_{500}<5\times10^{14}M_{\odot}$), the bright part of the LF (BCG excluded) does not depend much on mass or redshift except for its amplitude, whereas the BCG luminosity increases both with redshift and richness, and its scatter decreases with redshift.

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arXiv2018

The XXL Survey: XXX. Characterisation of the XLSSsC N01 supercluster and analysis of the galaxy stellar populations

Superclusters form from the largest enhancements in the primordial density perturbation field and extend for tens of Mpc, tracing the large-scale structure of the Universe. We characterise XLSSsCN01, a rich supercluster at z~0.3 detected in the XXL Survey, composed of X-ray clusters of different virial masses and luminosities. As one of the first studies on this topic, we investigate the stellar populations of galaxies in different environments in the supercluster region. We study a magnitude-limited (r<=20) and a mass-limited sample (log(M*/M_sun)>10.8) of galaxies in the virialised region and in the outskirts of 11 XLSSsCN01 clusters, in high- and low-density field. We compute the stellar population properties of galaxies using spectral energy distribution and spectral fitting techniques, and study the dependence of star formation rates (SFR), colours, and stellar ages on environment. For r<20, the fraction of SFing/blue galaxies, computed either from the specific-SFR (sSFR) or rest-frame(rf) colour, shows depletion within the cluster virial radii, where the number of galaxies with log(sSFR/yr^-1)>-12 and with (g-r)_rf<0.6 is lower than in the field. For log(M*/M_sun)>10.8, no trends with environment emerge, as massive galaxies are mostly already passive in all environments. No differences among low- and high-density field members and cluster members emerge in the sSFR-mass relation. The luminosity-weighted age-mass relation of the passive populations within cluster virial radii show signatures of recent environmental quenching. The study of luminous and massive galaxies in this supercluster shows that while environment has a prominent role in determining the fractions of SFing/blue galaxies, its effects on the star formation activity in SFing galaxies are negligible.

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arXiv2018

The XXL Survey XXXII. Spatial clustering of the XXL-S AGN

The XMM-XXL Survey spans two fields of $\rm 25$ deg$^2$ each observed for more than 6Ms with XMM, which provided a sample of tens of thousands of point sources with a flux limit of $\sim 2.2 \times 10^{-15}$ and $\sim 1.4 \times 10^{-14}$ erg s$^{-1}$ cm$^{2}$, corresponding to 50% of the area curve, in the soft band and hard band, respectively. In this paper we present the spatial clustering properties of $\sim 3100$ and $\sim 1900$ X-ray active galactic nuclei (AGNs) in the 0.5-2 and 2-10 keV bands, respectively, which have been spectroscopically observed with the AAOmega facility. This sample is 90% redshift complete down to an optical magnitude limit of $r\lesssim 21.8$. The sources span the redshift interval $0<z<5.2$, although in the current analysis we limit our samples to $z\le 3$, with corresponding sample median values of $\bar{z}\simeq 0.96$ and 0.79 for the soft band and hard band, respectively. We employ the projected two-point correlation function to infer the spatial clustering and find a correlation length $r_0=7.0 (\pm 0.34)$ and 6.42$(\pm 0.42)$ $h^{-1}$ Mpc, respectively, for the soft- and hard-band detected sources with a slope for both cases of $γ=1.44 (\pm 0.1)$. The power-law clustering was detected within comoving separations of 1 and $\sim$25 $h^{-1}$ Mpc. These results, as well as those derived in two separate redshift ranges, provide bias factors of the corresponding AGN host dark matter halos that are consistent with a halo mass of $\log_{10} [M_h/(h^{-1} M_{\odot})]=13.04\pm 0.06$, confirming the results of most recent studies based on smaller X-ray AGN samples.

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arXiv2018

The THESEUS space mission concept: science case, design and expected performances

THESEUS is a space mission concept aimed at exploiting Gamma-Ray Bursts for investigating the early Universe and at providing a substantial advancement of multi-messenger and time-domain astrophysics. These goals will be achieved through a unique combination of instruments allowing GRB and X-ray transient detection over a broad field of view (more than 1sr) with 0.5-1 arcmin localization, an energy band extending from several MeV down to 0.3 keV and high sensitivity to transient sources in the soft X-ray domain, as well as on-board prompt (few minutes) follow-up with a 0.7 m class IR telescope with both imaging and spectroscopic capabilities. THESEUS will be perfectly suited for addressing the main open issues in cosmology such as, e.g., star formation rate and metallicity evolution of the inter-stellar and intra-galactic medium up to redshift $\sim$10, signatures of Pop III stars, sources and physics of re-ionization, and the faint end of the galaxy luminosity function. In addition, it will provide unprecedented capability to monitor the X-ray variable sky, thus detecting, localizing, and identifying the electromagnetic counterparts to sources of gravitational radiation, which may be routinely detected in the late '20s / early '30s by next generation facilities like aLIGO/ aVirgo, eLISA, KAGRA, and Einstein Telescope. THESEUS will also provide powerful synergies with the next generation of multi-wavelength observatories (e.g., LSST, ELT, SKA, CTA, ATHENA).

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