arXiv subjects

Daniela Palma

Publications and source records attributed to Daniela Palma.

5 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

The role of filaments in the large-scale conformity signal

We investigate the large-scale conformity signal and its connection with the large-scale structure, focusing on low-mass central galaxies, after excluding galaxies that were satellites in the past. We measure the signal across different environments identified with the DisPerSE algorithm, including group outskirts, cluster outskirts, filaments, filament outskirts, and other environments (voids and walls) in order to assess how each population contributes to the large-scale conformity signal. We use the galaxy catalogs from the IllustrisTNG300 simulation and the semi-analytic model MDPL2-SAG. In SAG, galaxies embedded in filamentary regions emerge as the primary contributors to the large-scale conformity signal, closely reproducing its overall shape and amplitude. In TNG300, galaxies located in filamentary regions also exhibit a coherent, albeit weaker, conformity signal once galaxies that were satellites in the past are excluded. We also examine whether the signal depends on the adopted filament definition. We find no substantial differences when varying the filament thickness or considering galaxies in overlapping regions. Instead, the signal remains strong and largely insensitive to these differences. We then investigate the dependence of the conformity signal on filament linear density, length, and mass. The signal is enhanced in high-linear density, short, and high-mass filaments, but remains present in low-linear density, long, and low-mass filaments, although with a slightly lower amplitude. Finally, we find that low-mass central galaxies located in close proximity to interacting massive systems show an amplified conformity signal extending up to 4 Mpc/h. Overall, our results indicate that filamentary regions, and the tidal forces from neighboring massive systems play a fundamental role in shaping the large-scale conformity signal.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2025

The spatial distribution of dwarf and giant galaxies in and around Virgo cluster

The Virgo cluster is one of the closest clusters to us where we can further study the evolution of galaxies, with several infalling substructures and several filaments around it have been reported. Therefore, it makes this cluster and its surrounding an interesting place to study the spatial distribution of the population of dwarf and bright giant galaxies. We analyse the dwarf fraction (DF) in different regions of the cluster, inside the virial radius, in its surrounding area, and in the filamentary structure surrounding it using available catalogues with the aim of measuring whether the DF changes in different environments. Although the total dwarf fraction within the cluster is $\sim$ 0.8, significant local variations are measured throughout the cluster; there are regions with a relatively higher concentration of giant or dwarf galaxies. The fact that Virgo is embedded in a rich environment surrounded by several filaments that feed the cluster with new substructures could imply changes in the DF locally. When we analyse the DF variation at further distances from the cluster we observe some regions with few or no giant galaxies at all, with a locally DF ranging from 0.8 - 1.0. Additionally, when comparing the dwarf fraction in different environments, overall, the DF is larger in regions further away from denser regions such as the Virgo cluster and its filamentary structure surrounding it. When comparing the filament and the cluster area, the dwarf fraction is slightly higher in the filaments, but from filament to filament, the DF changes depending on the presence of groups.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2025

Assessing the connection between galactic conformity and assembly-type bias

Context. Galaxies in the Universe show a conformity in the fraction of quenched galaxies out to large distances, being much larger around quenched central galaxies than for star-forming ones. On the other hand, simulations have shown that the clustering of halos and the galaxies within them depends on secondary properties other than halo mass, a phenomenon termed assembly bias. Aims. Our aim is to study whether samples that show galactic conformity also show assembly bias and to see if the amplitude of these two effects is correlated. Methods. We use synthetic galaxies at $z = 0$ from the semi-analytical model SAG run on the MultiDark Planck 2 (MDPL2) cosmological simulation and measure both conformity and galaxy assembly bias for different samples of central galaxies at fixed host halo mass. We focus on central galaxies hosted by low-mass halos of 10$^{11.6}$ $\leq$ $M_{\rm h}$/$h^{-1}$ M$_{\odot}$ $<$ 10$^{11.8}$ because it is a mass range where the assembly bias has been reported to be strong. The samples of central galaxies are separated according to their specific star formation rate and stellar age. Results. We find that the level of conformity shown by our different samples is correlated with the level of assembly bias measured for them. We also find that removing central galaxies around massive halos diminishes the conformity signal and lowers the amount of assembly bias. Conclusions. The high correlation in the amplitude of conformity and assembly bias for different samples with and without removing galaxies near massive halos clearly indicates the strong relationship between both phenomena.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2024

The evolution of low-mass central galaxies in the vicinity of massive structures and its impact on the two-halo conformity

We investigated the population of low-mass central galaxies with Mstar = $10^{9.5}-10^{10}$ Msun/h, inhabiting regions near massive groups and clusters of galaxies using the TNG300 and MDPL2-SAG simulations. We set out to study their evolutionary histories, aiming to find hints about the large-scale conformity signal they produce. We also used a control sample of central galaxies with the same stellar mass range located far away from massive structures. For both samples, we find a subpopulation of galaxies accreted by another halo in the past, but now considered central galaxies; we refer to these objects as former satellites. The number of former satellites is higher for quenched central galaxies near massive systems, with fractions of 45% and 17% in TNG300 and MDPL2-SAG. Our results in TNG300 show that former satellites pollute the sample of central galaxies because they suffered environmental processes when they were satellites hosted typically by massive dark matter halos (M200 $\geq 10^{13}$ Msun/h) since z$\lesssim$0.5. After removing former satellites, the evolutionary trends for quenched central galaxies near massive structures are fairly similar to those of the quenched control galaxies, showing small differences at low redshift. For MDPL2-SAG instead, former satellites were hosted by less massive halos, with a mean halo mass around $10^{11.4}$ Msun/h, and the evolutionary trends remain equal before and after removing former satellite galaxies. We also measured the two-halo conformity, i.e, the correlation in the sSFR between low-mass central galaxies and their neighbors at Mpc scales, and how former satellites contribute to the signal at three different redshifts: z=0, 0.3, and 1. The time evolution of the conformity signal in the simulations presents apparent contradictory results: it decreases from z=0 to z=1 in MDPL2-SAG, while it increases in TNG300 (abridged).

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2023

Cosmological simulations of a momentum coupling between dark matter and quintessence

Dark energy is frequently modelled as an additional dynamical scalar field component in the Universe, referred to as "quintessence", which drives the late-time acceleration. Furthermore, the quintessence field may be coupled to dark matter and/or baryons, leading to a fifth force. In this paper we explore the consequences for non-linear cosmological structure formation arising from a momentum coupling between the quintessence field and dark matter only. The coupling leads to a modified Euler equation, which we implement in an N-body cosmological simulation. We then analyse the effects of the coupling on the non-linear power spectrum and the properties of the dark matter halos. We find that, for certain quintessence potentials, a positive coupling can lead to significantly reduced structure on small scales and somewhat enhanced structure on large scales, as well as reduced halo density profiles and increased velocity dispersions.

astro-ph.CO↗