arXiv subjects

E. Ellingson

Publications and source records attributed to E. Ellingson.

53 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

arXiv1997

Results on Galaxy Evolution from the CNOC2 Field Galaxy Redshift Survey

The CNOC2 Field Galaxy Redshift Survey presently contains some 5000 galaxy redshifts, plus extensive UBgRI photometry, and is the largest galaxy sample at moderate redshifts 0.1 < z < 0.6. Here we present some preliminary results on the galaxy luminosity function (LF) and its redshift evolution, using a sample of R < 21.5 CNOC2 galaxies, subdivided into early, intermediate, and late types based on their B-R colors relative to non-evolving galaxy models. We find a significant steepening in the faint-end slope alpha of the LF as one proceeds from early to late types. Also, for all galaxy types we find a rate of M* evolution consistent with that from passively evolving galaxy models. Finally, late-type galaxies show positive density evolution with redshift, in contrast to negative or no density evolution for earlier types.

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arXiv1997

Omega_M and the CNOC Surveys

The CNOC1 cluster survey measures Omega_M via Oort's method, Omega_M= M/L x j/rho_c, where M/L is the field mass-to-light ratio, j is the field luminosity density and rho_c is the closure density. A wide range of potential systematic effects are explicitly controlled by independently deriving the mean cluster mass profile (finding good agreement with theoretical predictions), the cluster light profile, the redshift evolution of both cluster and field galaxies, the differential evolution between the two, and the field and cluster efficiencies for the conversion of baryons into galaxies. We conclude that Omega_M=0.19+/-0.06 where the errors are objectively evaluated via resampling methods. The redshift evolution of the numbers of clusters per unit co-moving volume over the 0< z < 0.6 range is found to be very slow, as is required for consistency with a low density universe. The evolution of galaxy clustering in the field is compatible with a low density universe, and strongly disfavors models of galaxy evolution that associate low density halos with individual galaxies.

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arXiv1997

Star Formation in Cluster Galaxies at 0.2<z<0.55

The rest frame equivalent width of the [OII]3727 emission line, W(OII), has been measured for cluster and field galaxies in the CNOC redshift survey of rich clusters at 0.2 10 A, as expected in a model of cluster formation in which star formation is truncated upon infall. Evidence of supressed star formation relative to the field is present in the whole cluster sample, out to 2 R_{200}, so the mechanism responsible for the differential evolution must be acting at a large distance from the cluster centre, and not just in the core. The mean star formation rate in the cluster galaxies with the strongest emission corresponds to an increase in the total stellar mass of less than about 4% if the star formation is due to a secondary burst lasting 0.1 Gyr.

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arXiv1997

Omega baryon via Oort's Method

The baryon density of the universe is equal to the product of the baryon-to-light ratio, M_b/L, and the luminosity density, j. We estimate M_b/L as the sum of the masses of the X-ray gas and the visible stars in a rich cluster of galaxies divided by the luminosity of the cluster galaxies in precisely the same sky aperture. We evaluate the gas-to-light ratio derived from the EMSS detect cell flux and the CNOC cluster redshift survey galaxies. After making an aperture correction to an effective overdensity of 500rho_c, we find that Omega_gas=0.012-0.016 h^-3/2, depending on the galaxy fading correction. Adding in the galaxy baryons at a mass-to-light ratio of 5 Msun/Lsun, equivalent to Omega_stars=0.003h^-1, we find that Omega_b=0.015-0.019 for H_0=100 (or 0.040-0.051 for H_0=50). Expressed as the baryon to photon ratio, eta, this corresponds to eta=4.0-5.2x10^{-10} (H_0=100) and is in the mid-range of values from other methods. The individual clusters have a dispersion about the mean Omega_{gas} of 40%, and the chi^2 of the 14 clusters is consistent with the hypothesis that the gas-to-light ratio is a universal constant. If we ignore the light of the cD, the variance increases by a factor of three. After the radial segregation of gas and light within a cluster is taken into account, these statistics indicate that there is little variation of the gas-to-light ratio from cluster to cluster over the 0.2 to 0.55 range in redshift.

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arXiv1997

The Average Mass Profile of Galaxy Clusters

The average mass density profile measured in the CNOC cluster survey is well described with the analytic form rho(r)=A/[r(r+a_rho)^2], as advocated on the basis on n-body simulations by Navarro, Frenk & White. The predicted core radii are a_rho=0.20 (in units of the radius where the mean interior density is 200 times the critical density) for an Omega=0.2 open CDM model, or a_rho=0.26 for a flat Omega=0.2 model, with little dependence on other cosmological parameters for simulations normalized to the observed cluster abundance. The dynamically derived local mass-to-light ratio, which has little radial variation, converts the observed light profile to a mass profile. We find that the scale radius of the mass distribution, 0.20<= a_rho <= 0.30 (depending on modeling details, with a 95% confidence range of 0.12-0.50), is completely consistent with the predicted values. Moreover, the profiles and total masses of the clusters as individuals can be acceptably predicted from the cluster RMS line-of-sight velocity dispersion alone. This is strong support of the hierarchical clustering theory for the formation of galaxy clusters in a cool, collisionless, dark matter dominated universe.

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arXiv1997

The CNOC Cluster Survey: Omega, sigma_8, Phi(L,z) Results, and Prospects for Lambda Measurement

Rich galaxy clusters are powerful probes of both cosmological and galaxy evolution parameters. The CNOC cluster survey was primarily designed to distinguish between Omega=1 and Omega~0.2 cosmologies. Projected foreground and background galaxies provide a field sample of comparable size. The results strongly support a low-density universe. The luminous cluster galaxies are about 10-30% fainter, depending on color, than the comparable field galaxies, but otherwise they show a slow and nearly parallel evolution. On the average, there is no excess star formation when galaxies fall into clusters. These data provide the basis for a simple Lambda measurement using the survey's clusters and the field data. The errors in Omega_M, Lambda, sigma_8 and galaxy evolution parameters could be reduced to a few percent with a sample of a few hundred clusters spread over the 0<z<1 range.

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arXiv1997

Redshift Evolution of Galaxy Cluster Densities

The number of rich galaxy clusters per unit volume is a strong function of Omega, the cosmological density parameter, and sigma_8, the linear extrapolation to z=0 of the density contrast in 8/h Mpc spheres. The CNOC cluster redshift survey provides a sample of clusters whose average mass profiles are accurately known, which enables a secure association between cluster numbers and the filtered density perturbation spectrum. We select from the CNOC cluster survey those EMSS clusters with bolometric L_x>=10^45 erg/s and a velocity dispersion exceeding 800 km/s in the redshift ranges 0.18-0.35 and 0.35-0.55. We compare the number density of these subsamples with similar samples at both high and low redshift. Using the Press-Schechter formalism and CDM style structure models, the density data are described with sigma_8=0.75+/-0.1 and Omega=0.4+/-0.2 (90% confidence). The cluster dynamical analysis gives Omega=0.2+/-0.1$ for which sigma_8=0.95+/-0.1 (90% confidence). The predicted cluster density evolution in an Ω=1 CDM model exceeds that observed by more than an order of magnitude.

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arXiv1996

The Average Mass-to-Light Profile of Galaxy Clusters

The systematic errors in the virial mass-to-light ratio, M_v/L, of galaxy clusters as an estimator of the field M/L value are assessed. We overlay 14 clusters in redshift space to create an ensemble cluster which averages over substructure and asymmetries. The combined sample, including background, contains about 1150 galaxies, extending to a projected radius of about twice r_200. The radius r_200, defined as where the mean interior density is 200 times the critical density, is expected to contain the bulk of the virialized cluster mass. The dynamically derived M(r_200)/L(r_200) of the ensemble is 0.82+/-0.14 . The M_v/L overestimate is attributed to not taking into account the surface pressure term in the virial equation. Under the assumption that the velocity anisotropy parameter is in the range 0<=β<=2/3, the galaxy distribution accurately traces the mass profile beyond about the central 0.3r_200. There are no color or luminosity gradients in the galaxy population beyond 2r_200, but there is 0.11+/-0.05 mag fading in the r band luminosities between the field and cluster galaxies. We correct the cluster virial mass-to-light ratio, M_v/L=289+/-50 h\msun/\lsun (calculated assuming q_0=0.1), for the biases in M_v and mean luminosity to estimate the field M/L=213+/-59 h\msun/\lsun. With our self-consistently derived field luminosity density, j/ρ_c=1136+/-138 h\msun/\lsun (at z~1/3), the corrected M/L indicates Ω_0=0.19+/-0.06+/-0.04 (formal 1σrandom error and estimated potential systematic errors).

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arXiv1996

The Luminosity Function of Field Galaxies in the CNOC1 Redshift Survey

We have computed the luminosity function for 389 field galaxies from the Canadian Network for Observational Cosmology cluster redshift survey (CNOC1), over redshifts z = 0.2-0.6. We find Schechter parameters M^* - 5 log h = -19.6 \pm 0.3 and α= -0.9 \pm 0.2 in rest-frame B_{AB}. We have also split our sample at the color of a redshifted but nonevolving Sbc galaxy, and find distinctly different luminosity functions for red and blue galaxies. Red galaxies have a shallow slope α\approx -0.4 and dominate the bright end of the luminosity function, while blue galaxies have a steep α\approx -1.4 and prevail at the faint end. Comparisons of the CNOC1 results to those from the Canada-France (CFRS) and Autofib redshift surveys show broad agreement among these independent samples, but there are also significant differences which will require larger samples to resolve. Also, in CNOC1 the red galaxy luminosity density stays about the same over the range z = 0.2-0.6, while the blue galaxy luminosity density increases steadily with redshift. These results are consistent with the trend of the luminosity density vs. redshift relations seen in the CFRS, though the normalizations of the luminosity densities appear to differ for blue galaxies. Comparison to the local luminosity function from the Las Campanas redshift survey (LCRS) shows that the luminosity density at z \approx 0.1 is only about half that seen at z \approx 0.4. A change in the luminosity function shape, particularly at the faint end, appears to be required to match the CNOC1 and LCRS luminosity functions, if galaxy evolution is the sole cause of the differences seen. However, it should be noted that the specific details of the construction of different surveys may complicate the comparison of results and so may need to be considered carefully.

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arXiv1996

Close Pairs of Field Galaxies in the CNOC1 Redshift Survey

A redshift sample of 545 field galaxies is used to examine how the galaxy merger rate changes with redshift, and how mergers affect the observed properties of galaxies in close pairs. Close pairs are defined as those with projected separations less than 20 h^{-1} kpc. At a mean redshift of 0.33, it is found that 7.1 +/- 1.4 % of galaxies are in close physical pairs, compared to 4.3 +/- 0.4 % locally. The merger rate is estimated to change with redshift as (1+z)^{2.8 +/- 0.9}. These results are shown to be consistent with previous close pair studies, and provide one of the strongest constraints to date on the redshift dependence of the merger rate. As with earlier studies, no significant differences between the mean properties of paired and isolated galaxies are detected. However, using the subset of confirmed close physical pairs, those which appear to be undergoing interactions or mergers (based on their images) are found to have galaxies with strong emission lines and very blue rest-frame colors. In addition, these pairs have low relative velocities, increasing the likelihood that the galaxies will merge. We interpret this as the first clear evidence of merger-induced star formation occurring in field galaxies at this redshift.

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arXiv1996

Optical-IR Spectral Energy Distribution of the Proto-Galaxy Candidate MS1512-cB58

The spectral energy distribution of the proto-galaxy candidate MS1512-cB58 at $z =2.72$ discovered by Yee et al. (1996) is presented. Photometry in seven bands ranging from $g$ to $K$$'$ (1300--6000 Å~rest wavelength) are fitted with population synthesis models from Bruzual \& Charlot (1993). The data confirm a very young age for this galaxy, in agreement with ages estimated from preliminary \CIV~P-Cygni profile modeling. Single-burst models with ages greater than about 20 Myr can be discarded at the 99\% confidence level, and continuous star formation models with ages greater than about 35 Myr can be discarded at the 95\% confidence level. The spectral energy distribution is most consistent with a continuous star formation model of about 10--20 Myr, with reddening of $E(B-V)\sim 0.3$. No evidence for an older population of stars is seen, but the possibility of an older population with as much as 90\% of the galaxy mass cannot be ruled out. We discuss the possible ramifications of a non-standard IMF and gravitational lensing on the galaxy's age and mass.

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arXiv1996

Galaxy Evolution in Abell 2390

The galaxy population in the intermediate-redshift ($z=0.228$) rich cluster Abell 2390 is investigated. We present velocities, colors, and morphological information for an exceptionally large sample of 323 galaxies (216 cluster members) in a 46$^\prime \times 7^\prime$ (6 $h^{-1}$ Mpc $\times$ 1 $h^{-1}$ Mpc) strip centered on the cD galaxy. This sample of confirmed cluster members is second only to that for the Coma cluster in terms of sample size and spatial coverage in the cluster rest frame, and is the first to trace the transition between a rich cluster and the field at intermediate redshift. The galaxy population in the cluster changes gradually from a very evolved, early-type population in the inner 0.4 \hmpc\ of the cluster to a progressively later-type population in the extensive outer envelope of the cluster from 1 to 3 \hmpc\/ in radius. Radial gradients in galaxy $g-r$ color, 4000 Å\/ break, H$δ$ and [O II] line strengths and morphology are seen in the cluster, and are investigated by comparing the data to models computed with the GISSEL spectral synthesis package. The results suggest that the cluster has been gradually built up by the infall of field galaxies over $\sim 8$ Gyr and that star formation has been truncated in infalling galaxies during the accretion process. The morphological composition of the cluster is shown to be consistent with such a scenario. If true for other clusters, infall-truncated star formation as seen in Abell 2390 may explain both the Butcher-Oemler effect and the large fraction of S0 galaxies in clusters. Only $\simlt$5\% of the galaxies observed in Abell 2390 exhibit evidence for star formation at levels stronger than those seen in typical late-type systems. This suggests that starbursts do not play a major role in driving cluster galaxy evolution at the redshift of

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arXiv1996

Evolution of galactic disks in clusters and the field at $0.1 < z < 0.6$ in the CNOC survey

Two-dimensional surface photometry is presented for a sample of 351 late-type galaxies with $0.12 < z < 0.65$. These objects are drawn from the Canadian Network for Observational Cosmology (CNOC) cluster survey and are either spectroscopically confirmed members of clusters at $z=0.23$ (64 galaxies), $0.43$ (45), and $0.55$ (36) or field galaxies with similar redshifts. Galaxies in the rich cluster Abell 2256 at $z=0.06$ were also analyzed with the same methods to provide a local reference point. At redshifts of (0.23, 0.43, 0.55) the disk surface brightness in cluster late-type galaxies is higher in the $B$-band by $Δμ_{0}(B) =(-0.58\pm 0.12,-1.22\pm 0.17,-0.97\pm 0.2$) mag, respectively, relative to the Freeman (1970) constant surface-brightness relation; whereas disks in cluster galaxies at $z=0.06$ are consistent with that relation. Field galaxies show a progressive disk-brightening with redshift that is consistent with that seen in the cluster population. Taken together with similar measurements of early-type galaxies (Schade et al. 1996a), these results suggest that the evolution of the field and cluster galaxy populations are similar, although we emphasize that our sample of cluster galaxies is dominated by objects at large distances (up to 3 Mpc) from the dense cluster core, so that the implications of these findings with respect to the Butcher-Oemler effect and the morphology-density relation will not be clear until an analysis of galaxy properties as a function of cluster-centric distance is completed.

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arXiv1996

Evolution of Cluster and Field Ellipticals at $0.2 < z < 0.6$ in the CNOC Cluster Survey

Two-dimensional surface photometry has been done for 166 {\em early-type} galaxies (bulge/total luminosity $B/T>0.6$) in 3 fields of the Canadian Network for Observational Cosmology (CNOC) cluster survey. These galaxies are either spectroscopically confirmed members of clusters at $z=0.23$ (45 galaxies), $0.43$ (22), and $0.55$ (16) or field galaxies in the same redshift range. An additional 51 early-type galaxies in the rich cluster Abell 2256 at $z=0.06$ were analysed with the same technique. The resulting structural and surface brightness measurements show that, in the plane of absolute magnitude $M_{AB}(B)$ versus $\log R_e$ (half-light radius), the locus of cluster ellipticals shifts monotonically with redshift so that at redshifts of (0.23, 0.43, 0.55), galaxies of a given size are more luminous by ($-0.25\pm 0.10,-0.55\pm 0.12,-0.74\pm 0.21$) magnitudes with respect to the same relation measured at $z=0.06$ (adopting $q_\circ=0.5$). There is no evidence that early-type galaxies in the field evolve differently from those in clusters. If dynamical processes do not substantially modify the size-luminosity relation for early-type galaxies over the observed redshift range, then these galaxies have undergone significant luminosity evolution over the past half of the age of the universe. The amount of brightening is consistent with passive evolution models of old, single-burst stellar populations.

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arXiv1996

A Proto-Galaxy Candidate at z=2.7 Discovered by Its Young Stellar Population

A protogalaxy candidate at z=2.72 has been discovered serendipitously by the CNOC cluster redshift survey. The candidate is an extremely luminous (V=20.5 mag, absolute mag -26) and well resolved disk-like galaxy. The redshift is identified from a dozen strong UV absorption lines. No emission lines are found between 1000 and 2000A (rest), including Ly alpha. The photometric data fit the spectral energy distributions of a stellar population from 400 million years to an arbitrarily young age, dependent on the amount of dust extinction. However, the presence of a strong P-Cygni profile in CIV~indicates that a very substantial component of the stellar population must be younger than ~ 10 Myr. We interpret this object as an early-type galaxy observed within about 100 million years of the initial burst of star formation which created most of its stellar mass. Because of the resolved, regular, and smooth nature of the object, it is unlikely that the high luminosity is due to gravitational lensing.

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arXiv1996

The Two-Point Correlation Function at Redshift 1/3

We present the results of a study of the two-point correlation function for a sample of field galaxies taken from the CNOCI cluster survey. The sample consists of 144 galaxies within a contiguous region of space subtending 225 square arcminutes. The objects have r-band magnitudes 17.0 < r < 21.7 and redshifts 0.21 < z < 0.53. The median redshift of the sample is 0.36. The real space correlation function is found to be consistent with a power law ξ(r) = (r/r_0)^-1.7 with r_0 = 2.1 +0.6/-0.3 (Ω_0=1), or r_0 = 2.5 +0.7/-0.4 (Ω_0=0.2). Uncertainties are estimated using the bias-corrected bootstrap resampling method, with 300 resamplings. This low correlation length implies strong evolution since z~0.36 has occurred in either the correlation function or the luminosity function; if the observed correlation function is modeled as ξ(r,z) = ξ(r,0) * (1+z)^-(3+ε) with ξ(r,0) = (r/5.1 h^-1Mpc)^-1.7, then ε= 0.8 +1.0/-1.3. Comparison of the redshift space and real space correlation function indicates that the one-dimensional pairwise peculiar velocity dispersion σat z~0.36 is weakly inconsistent with 770 km s^-1, the value predicted by the Cosmic Virial Theorem if Ω_0=1. The observed correlation function is, however, consistent with σ=400 km s^-1, the value expected if Ω_0=0.2.

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arXiv1994

Lensing from the Light-Traces-Mass Map of MS1224+20

The MS1224+20 cluster of galaxies is a high luminosity X-ray source at z=0.325. To compare the lensing mass to the virial mass we have completed a uniform, high precision redshift survey over a field of $7\arcm\times9\arcm$, obtaining 75 redshifts. The velocity dispersion of 30 cluster galaxies is $775$ \kms\ and the projected harmonic radius is 0.32 \hmpc. The virial mass is $2.1\times 10^{14} h^{-1} \msun$. Correcting for faint cluster galaxies without redshifts and allowing for a modest evolution in the galaxy luminosity function gives a current epoch mass-to-light ratio $M/L_V(0)=255h \msun/\lsun$. The same field contains a $z=0.225$ cluster with $σ_v\simeq 500$ \kms, and a group at $z=0.412$ with $σ_v\simeq 400$ \kms. The clusters' gravitational field induces image ellipticities that are calculated from the light-traces-mass density distribution and compared to the observed average tangential distortions from Fahlman \et (1994). Between 1.5 and 3 virial radii, the observed lensing distortions are $4\pm2$ times stronger than the light-traces-mass model and the virial M/L predict.

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