arXiv subjects

Enci Wang

Publications and source records attributed to Enci Wang.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2026

Symmetry in Fundamental Parameters of Galaxies on the Star-forming Main Sequence

The Star-Forming Main Sequence (SFMS) serves as a critical framework for understanding galaxy evolution, highlighting the relationship between star formation rates (SFR) and stellar masses M_* across cosmic time. Despite its significance, the origin of the 0.3-0.4 dex dispersion in the SFMS remains a key unresolved question. Uncovering the origin of dispersion is crucial for understanding the evolution of galaxies. Using a large sample of approximately 500,000 galaxies, we reveal an unprecedented symmetry in the distribution of key structural properties-effective radius (R_{\rm e}), stellar surface density (M_*/R_{\rm e}^2), and morphology on the SFMS. This symmetry implies that galaxies with high (above SFMS) and low (below SFMS) SFRs share similar fundamental parameters. Moreover, galaxies with smaller R_{\rm e} or higher M_*/R_{\rm e}^2 exhibit greater dispersion in SFR. This dispersion reflects the response to fluctuations in cosmic accretion flows, while the SFR itself represents the time-averaged effect over the gas consumption timescale. Shorter gas consumption timescales, associated with higher M_*/R_{\rm e}^2, lead to greater SFR dispersion. Our results reveal that the variation of SFR originates from the oscillation of accretion flow and is regulated by the stellar surface density.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2026

Revisiting the Origin of the Star-Forming Main Sequence Based on a Volume-Limited Sample of ~25,000 Galaxies

We revisit the extensively debated star-forming main sequence (SFMS)-a tight correlation between the star formation rate and stellar mass in both kiloparsec-resolved and integrated galaxies. We statistically explore the fundamental drivers of star formation at global scales, using a large volume-limited sample of 24,954 local star-forming galaxies to overcome the limitations of previous works. Based on the mid-infrared 12 micron luminosity, stellar mass, and g-r color, we estimate the molecular gas mass for the considered sample. At galaxy-wide scales, we establish global relations between the surface densities of the star formation rate, stellar mass, and molecular gas mass . These global density relations are connected with and follow similar trends as the resolved SFMS, the Kennicutt-Schmidt (KS) relation, and the molecular gas main sequence (MGMS). Taking advantage of this large catalog, we show that the scatters in the global KS and MGMS relations are smaller than that of the global relation between the star formation rate surface density and stellar mass surface density, and their Pearson correlation coefficients are higher. More importantly, multivariate regression and partial correlation analyses demonstrate that the apparent correlation between the star formation rate surface density and stellar mass surface density is entirely mediated by the molecular gas surface density, with its best-fit parameters directly derivable from those of the KS and MGMS relations. Overall, our findings suggest that the correlation between stellar mass and molecular gas, as well as that between molecular gas and star formation, are more direct and fundamental. The star-forming main sequence thus appears to be a natural by-product of these two tighter relations.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2026

First Statistical Detection of MgII-traced Cool Gas Outflows with JWST Towards Cosmic Dawn

Galactic-scale outflows are a crucial component of galaxy evolution, yet their properties in the early universe remain poorly constrained. We present the first statistical investigation of \ion{Mg}{2}-traced cool gas outflows in galaxies spanning a wide cosmic timeline from $z \approx 1$ to $z > 6$ (with sample coverage extending to $z \sim 10$). Using thousands of public JWST/NIRSpec spectra, we employ a signal-to-noise weighted spectral stacking technique on the \ion{Mg}{2} $λ\lambda2796, 2803$ absorption doublet. We robustly detect blueshifted \ion{Mg}{2} absorption in nearly all stellar mass and redshift bins, with the exception of the lowest-mass systems at $z \sim 1-2$. The outflow equivalent width exhibits a positive correlation with stellar mass ($M_*$) at all epochs, with the fitted slope of $1.21 \pm 0.35$. Our work provides the first statistical constraints on \ion{Mg}{2}-traced cool outflows in the low-mass ($M_* \lesssim 10^{9.5} \, \mathrm{M}_\odot$), high-redshift ($z > 3$) regime. We also find that the outflow velocities generally remain below the host halo escape velocities, consistent with a galactic fountain scenario. The consistency of the stellar mass-outflow equivalent width relation across $z \sim 2-6$ suggests a persistent, unevolving feedback mechanism governing the baryon cycle towards cosmic dawn.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2026

The First Systematic Survey of Stellar Halos in High-Inclination Galaxies Reveals Unusually Quiescent Merger Histories of Nearby Galaxies

Stellar halos are the only major stellar component of disk galaxies that lack systematic observational characterization, yet they encode critical information about galaxy merger histories. We present the first systematic census of stellar halos in a large, flux-limited sample of 169 high-inclination central galaxies with stellar masses 7.3 <= log Mstar/Msun <= 11.0 and redshift z < 0.1, using HSC-SSP Deep optical images. Stellar halos are detected in 93 galaxies, primarily through their low isophotal ellipticities in the outskirts, improving upon conventional methods of stellar halo identification. The halo detection rate reaches ~ 50% at log Mstar/Msun > 9.9 and >= 70% for Milky Way (MW)-mass galaxies. We derive halo surface brightness profiles, colors, and masses, finding that stellar halos generally follow power-law radial profiles. Higher-mass galaxies, on average, exhibit smaller power-law indices and larger halo mass fractions, indicating more extended halos and more active merger histories. A significant stellar halo color-mass correlation, driven mainly by the mass-metallicity relation, suggests dominance by a few massive accretion events. MW-mass galaxies have a median stellar halo fraction of 10% +/- 5%. Among nearby galaxies with halo measurements within 25 Mpc, two thirds (including the MW) lie below the mean stellar halo fraction-galaxy mass relation. Overall, the nearby galaxies show a median halo deficit of ~ 0.3 dex, implying unusually quiescent merger histories. We show that this deficit follows a broader trend in which typical halo fractions increase with heliocentric distance, tracking the gradual rise in matter density toward the cosmic average by z <= 0.07.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2026

Updated Metallicity Diagnostics for Precision Oxygen Abundance Measurements in High-redshift Galaxies with JWST

Recent work has demonstrated that widely used strong-line oxygen abundance indicators, such as O3N2, $\rm R23$, and $\widehat{\rm R}$, suffer from large uncertainties when applied to high-redshift galaxies. We show that this loss of precision primarily arises because, at fixed \Oabund, galaxies span a wide dynamic range in ionization parameter and nitrogen enrichment. Here we develop updated indicators that explicitly incorporate both effects via the proxies O32 and N2O2. We define ${\rm R}_{\rm u}\equiv \rm R23+α_1 O32+α_2 N2O2$, $\widehat{\rm R}_{\rm u}\equiv \rm \widehat{R}+β_1 O32+β_2 N2O2$, and ${\rm O}_{\rm u}\equiv \rm O3N2+γ_1 O32+γ_2 N2O2$, and calibrate \Oabund~as low-order polynomials in each composite indicator. Applied to a JWST sample with $T_{\rm e}$-method abundances, the updated indicators substantially tighten the correlations with \Oabund, boosting adjusted coefficients of determination from $\mathbb{R}^2\lesssim 0$ (classical indicators) to $\mathbb{R}^2\gtrsim 0.5$ for the full sample and to $\sim 0.7$ at $z>2$. The residuals reveal a redshift evolution in the mapping between \Oabund, strong lines, ionization, and nitrogen enrichment, with a pivotal turning point near the cosmic noon ($z\sim 2$). Our calibrations provide a practical, physically grounded path to precise metallicity measurements in the JWST era and a firmer basis for quantifying early chemical enrichment and feedback.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2026

Radio AGN feedback sustains quiescence only in a minority of massive galaxies

Radio active galactic nuclei (AGNs) eject a huge amount of energy into the surrounding medium and are thought to potentially prevent gas cooling and maintain the quiescence of massive galaxies. The short-lived, sporadic, and anisotropic nature of radio activities, coupled with the detection of abundant cold gas around some massive quiescent galaxies, raise questions about the efficiency of radio feedback in massive galaxies. Here we present an innovative method rooted in artificial intelligence to separate galaxies in which radio feedback is effective (RFE), regardless of current radio emission, from those in which radio feedback is ineffective (RFI), according to their optical images. Galaxies categorized as RFE are all dynamically hot, whereas quiescent RFI (RFI-Q) galaxies usually have extended cold-disk components. At given stellar mass, dark matter halos hosting RFE galaxies are between four to ten times more massive than those of RFI-Q galaxies. We find, for the first time, that almost all RFE galaxies have scant cold gas, irrespective of AGN activity. In contrast, many RFI-Q galaxies are surrounded by substantial amounts of condensed atomic gas, indicating a different evolutionary path from RFE galaxies. Our finding provides direct and compelling evidence that a radio AGN has gone through about 300 on-off cycles and that radio feedback can prevent gas cooling over a timescale much longer than that of radio activity. Contrary to general belief, our analysis shows that only a small fraction of massive galaxies are influenced by strong radio AGNs, suggesting that current galaxy formation models need serious revision.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2025

Warped Disk Galaxies: Statistical Properties from DESI Legacy Imaging Surveys DR8

Warped structures are often observed in disk galaxies, yet their physical origin is still under investigation. We present a systematic study of warped edge-on disk galaxies based on imaging data from the DESI Legacy Imaging Surveys DR8, with the expectation that this large sample size, enabled by wide-area surveys, will offer new perspectives on the formation of disk warps. Using a deep learning approach, we trained an EfficientNet-B3 convolutional neural network to classify the morphology of edge-on-disk galaxies into warped and non-warped categories. Our model was trained on a curated and visually verified set of labeled galaxy images and applied to a large dataset of over 595,651 edge-on disk galaxies selected from the Galaxy Zoo DESI catalog. Our results provide the largest warp catalog to date, consisting of 23996 warped edge-on disk galaxies, and reveal statistical trends between warp occurrence and galaxy properties. Compared to their non-warped counterparts, these warped disk galaxies tend to have bluer colors, lower stellar masses, higher gas fractions and star-formation rates, smaller Sérsic indices and larger disk sizes. In addition, warped disk galaxies show higher projected number densities of neighboring galaxies than their non-warped counterparts, particularly within $ R_{\mathrm{proj}} \lesssim 50~\mathrm{kpc} $, where the local number density is roughly twice as high.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2025

Dissecting the mass quenching in TNG50: Galaxy size determines the quenching mode

The diminishing of star formation is accompanied by size differentiating, as quiescent galaxies are more compact than star-forming galaxies at fixed stellar mass. In order to understand how galaxy quenching is related to galaxy sizes, we performed a demographic study of 46 massive quiescent central galaxies with stellar mass from $10^{10.5}\rm M_\odot$ to $10^{11}\rm M_\odot$ in the TNG50 simulation. We found that, in addition to the triggering active galactic nucleus (AGN) feedback, galaxy size is also a major determinant of the quenching process, as small and compact galaxies are immediately quenched by the kinetic AGN feedback, while galaxies with large sizes are still active until strangulated by the cutoff of new gas replenishment. Further spatially resolved inspection reveals that this short and intense kinetic AGN feedback can only suppress the star formation within 1-2 kpc, resulting in this size-dependent effect of quenching. We also identify a long-term effect of a few Gyr timescale that the gas inflow rate is progressively suppressed after triggering kinetic feedback, which appears to effectively quench large galaxies entirely. We conclude that kinetic AGN feedback has two key roles in quenching: a short-term, intense effect that quenches the central 2 kpc region, and a long-term effect that suppresses the gas inflow rate and further quenches the entire galaxy.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2025

Unveiling the nature and fate of the almost-dark cloud AGC 226178 through HI mapping

The origin of extragalactic, almost dark HI clouds with extreme gas-to-stellar mass ratios remains poorly understood. We investigate the nature and fate of the "almost dark" cloud AGC 226178, projected within the Virgo cluster, with an HI-to-stellar mass ratio of ~1000. We present deep single-dish HI mapping from the Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical Telescope (FAST), complemented by high-resolution interferometric data from the Very Large Array (VLA), as part of the Atomic gas in Virgo Interacting Dwarf galaxies (AVID) project. These observations provide the highest-quality HI analysis to date of such a cloud, combining resolution and sensitivity. FAST data reveal a short, low-velocity tail toward the dwarf galaxy VCC 2034, previously proposed as a possible origin for AGC 226178. However, VCC 2034 shows a line-of-sight asymmetric HI feature and cometary morphology indicating a stripping event unrelated to AGC 226178. VLA data reveal a velocity gradient across AGC 226178 and a clumpy internal structure. The velocity dispersion exceeds the thermal linewidth, implying turbulence or unresolved motions. The cloud cannot be gravitationally bound by atomic gas alone. The resolved HI clumps follow standard HI mass-star formation rate and mass-size relations, with those forming stars reaching surface densities above the threshold for self-shielding. We conclude that AGC 226178 is a free-floating HI cloud of unknown origin. The system appears to be in the process of disintegration. It is likely located well outside the Virgo cluster, as the preservation of its extended HI morphology within the cluster environment would otherwise require a substantial reservoir of unseen molecular gas with a mass exceeding that of the observed HI content. While confinement pressure from the hot intracluster medium may aid its stability, it is unlikely to be the dominant factor preventing its disruption.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2025

Central Concentration and Escape of Ionizing Photons in Galaxies at the Epoch of Reionization

Compact, low-mass galaxies with strong nebular emission are considered promising candidates for efficient ionizing photon production and escape. We present a spatially resolved analysis of 189 galaxies at redshifts $z \sim 6.7-7.6$ in JADES GOODS-N and GOODS-S fields and selected via JWST/NIRCam F410M filter. By employing annular photometry and spectral energy distribution fitting across rest-frame UV to optical wavelengths, we investigate the internal structure of star formation, ionizing photon production and escape, as well as the resolved star formation histories within these galaxies. We find that these galaxies exhibit compact, centrally concentrated, and bursty star formation, especially in lower-mass systems ($\log(M_*/{\rm M_{\odot}}) <9.0$). The central regions of them display extreme [OIII]+H$β$ equivalent widths ($>$1000 Å), high ionizing photon production efficiencies ($ξ_{\text{ion}} \sim 10^{25.6}$ Hz erg$^{-1}$), steep UV slopes ($\sim -2.3$), and elevated escape fractions ($f_{\text{esc}} > 0.08$), with all these properties peaking in the inner regions. These findings reveal outside-in growth and rising star formation histories at $z\sim 7$, with the central regions of them playing a pivotal role in driving cosmic reionization.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2025

The Cosmic Evolution and Spatial Distribution of Multiphase Gas associated with QSOs

We investigate the multi-phase gas surrounding QSOs traced by 33 absorption lines (e.g., Ly$α$, C\,\textsc{iv}, Fe\,\textsc{ii}, Mg\,\textsc{ii}, etc.) in the stacked spectra of background sources, using the early data release from the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument. Our analysis reveals that the equivalent width ($ W $) of metal absorption lines decreases with increasing redshift, following an overall trend described by $W \propto (1+z)^{-4.0\pm 2.7}$. Different species that trace multi-phases of QSO-associated gas exhibit distinct evolutionary patterns. Additionally, the $ W $ of these absorption lines decreases with distance ($D$) from QSOs, which can be effectively characterized by a two-halo model. Compared to the projected two point correlation function of galaxies at similar redshifts, low-ionization ions exhibit similar clustering scales, while high-ionization ions show a significantly more extended spatial distribution. We also find that $W_{\text{FeII}}/W_{\text{MgII}}$ increases towards lower redshifts, which can be attributed to evolving star formation histories and/or changes in initial mass function for galaxies. By leveraging multiple absorption tracers, we conduct the first comprehensive investigation of diffuse, multiphase gas from the circumgalactic medium to cosmological scales, offering new insights into baryon cycles and the transport of metals throughout cosmic time.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2025

The Internal Kinematics, Stellar Population, and Gas-phase Properties of The Pseudobulge in An Ultra-diffuse Galaxy: AGC721966

Leveraging spectroscopic data from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey, we conduct a comprehensive analysis of the central stellar velocity dispersion, stellar population properties, star formation history, and gas-phase chemical abundances in AGC721966, a unique ultra-diffuse galaxy (UDG) harboring a pseudobulge. Our findings reveal that the pseudobulge formed in the early universe but underwent a recent episode of rejuvenated star formation. The system exhibits a mass-weighted (light-weighted) stellar population age of $τ_{\star}\sim 7.4\pm2.5$ ($2.9\pm1.5$)~Gyr, a stellar metallicity of [M/H]$\sim -0.62\pm0.26$ ($-0.55\pm0.20$), an $α$-element enhancement of [$α$/Fe]$\sim 0.36\pm0.09$ ($0.37\pm0.07$), and a gas-phase oxygen abundance of \Oabund$\sim 8.15\pm0.03$. The central stellar velocity dispersion is measured as $σ_{\rm c}\sim 57.9\pm15.7$~km/s. These results provide robust evidence supporting the early halo-halo merging formation scenario proposed by \cite{Rong25}, while unequivocally ruling out the ``failed'' $L^{\star}$ formation model, at least for AGC721966. Furthermore, through systematic application of the baryonic Tully-Fisher relation, we establish that these pseudobulge-hosting UDGs are neither misidentified nuclear star cluster-bearing dwarf galaxies nor bulge-dominated massive galaxies, thereby affirming their distinct evolutionary pathway.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2025

Potential-Driven Metal Cycling: JADES Census of Gas-Phase Metallicity for galaxies at 1 < z < 7

The gravitational potential is established as a critical determinant of gas-phase metallicity (12+log(O/H)) in low-redshift galaxies, whereas its influence remains unconfirmed at high redshifts. We investigate the correlation between gas-phase metallicity and effective radius ($R_{\rm e}$) for a sample of galaxies with redshifts ranging from 1 to 7, drawn from JADES (JWST Advanced Deep Extragalactic Survey) Data Release 3. We calculate the metallicities using four strong-line methods: ${\rm N2S2Hα}$, ${\rm R23}$, ${\rm N2}$, and ${\rm O3N2}$, respectively. After taking out the evolution of size, we find that the offsets of mass-size relation ($Δ\log R_{\rm e}$) are significantly negatively correlated with the offset of mass-metallicity relation ($Δ\log({\rm O/H})$) for the four metallicity tracers. Regardless of the metallicity tracer used, we obtain Spearman rank $p-$values much less than 0.01, rejecting the null hypothesis that the observed correlation is statistically nonsignificant and attributable to random chance. This is also true for galaxies with $z>3$, with $p-$values less than 0.05 for the four metallicity tracers. We for the first time find evidence of size playing a key role in determining gas-phase metallicity towards cosmic dawn, suggesting that the gravitational potential influences their material-exchange processes with the surrounding environment at very early universe.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2025

A negative stellar mass$-$gaseous metallicity gradient relation of dwarf galaxies modulated by stellar feedback

Baryonic cycling is reflected in the spatial distribution of metallicity within galaxies, yet gas-phase metallicity distribution and its connection with other properties of dwarf galaxies are largely unexplored. We present the first systematic study of radial gradients of gas-phase metallicities for a sample of 55 normal nearby star-forming dwarf galaxies (stellar mass $M_\star$ ranging from $10^7$ to $10^{9.5}\ M_\odot$), based on MUSE spectroscopic observations. We find that metallicity gradient shows a significant negative correlation (correlation coefficient $r \approx -0.56$) with $\log M_\star$, in contrast to the flat or even positive correlation observed for higher-mass galaxies. This negative correlation is accompanied by a stronger central suppression of metallicity compared to the outskirts in lower-mass galaxies. Among the other explored galaxy properties-including baryonic mass, star formation distribution, galaxy environment, regularity of the gaseous velocity field, and effective yield of metals $y_{\rm eff}$-only the velocity field regularity and $y_{\rm eff}$ show residual correlation with the metallicity gradient after controlling for $M_\star$, in the sense that galaxies with irregular velocity fields or lower $y_{\rm eff}$ tend to have less negative or more positive gradients. Particularly, a linear combination of $\log M_\star$ and $\log y_{\rm eff}$ significantly improves the correlation with metallicity gradient ($r \approx -0.68$) compared to $\log M_\star$ alone. The lack of correlation with environment disfavors gas accretion as a dominant factor. Our findings imply that metal mixing and transport processes, including but not limited to feedback-driven outflows, are more important than in-situ metal production in shaping the metallicity distribution of dwarf galaxies.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2025

Central Velocity Dispersion being the Primary Driver of Abundance Patterns in Quenched Galaxies

The element abundances of galaxies provide crucial insights into their formation and evolution. Using high-resolution IFU data from the MaNGA survey, we analyze the central spectra (0-0.5 $R_{\rm e}$) of 1,185 quenched galaxies ($z = 0.012-0.15$) to study their element abundances and stellar populations. We employ the full-spectrum fitting code {\tt alf} to derive stellar ages and element abundances from synthetic spectra and empirical libraries. Our key findings are: (1) Central velocity dispersion ($σ_*$) is the most effective parameter correlating with (relative) element abundances, especially [Na/Fe], [Mg/Fe], [C/Fe], and [N/Fe], outperforming $M_\ast$ and $M_\ast/R_{\rm e}$. (2) When binned by $σ_*$, the relative abundances of Na, Mg, C, and N remain stable across different formation times ($T_{\rm form}$), suggesting these elements are primarily influenced by the burstiness of star formation (traced by $σ_*$) rather than prolonged evolutionary processes. (3) Fe and Ca show little variation with $σ_*$, indicating weaker sensitivity to $σ_*$-driven processes. However, $T_{\rm form}$ has a global influence on all elements, contributing to their overall chemical evolution, albeit secondary to $σ_*$ for most elements. These results support the primary role of $σ_*$ in shaping the abundance patterns, likely stemming from the connection between central massive black holes and possibly dark matter halos, which influences the burstiness of star formation histories.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2025

Dominant Role of Coplanar Inflows in Driving Disk Evolution Revealed by Gas-Phase Metallicity Gradients

Using spatially resolved spectroscopic data from the MaNGA sample, we investigate the parameters influencing the radial gradients of gas-phase metallicity ($\nabla\log(\mathrm{O/H})$), to determine whether disk formation is primarily driven by coplanar gas inflow or by the independent evolution of distinct regions within the disk. Our results show that $\nabla \log(\mathrm{O/H})$ strongly correlates with local gas-phase metallicity at a given stellar mass, with steeper gradients observed in metal-poorer disks. This trend supports the coplanar gas inflow scenario, wherein the gas is progressively enriched by in situ star formation as it flows inward. In contrast, the radial gradient of stellar mass surface density shows very weak correlations with $\nabla \log(\mathrm{O/H})$, which is inconsistent with the independent evolution mode, where gas inflow, star formation, and metal enrichment occur independently within each annulus of the disk. Furthermore, we find that $\nabla \log(\mathrm{O/H})$ is also closely correlated with an indicator of local gas turbulence $σ_{\mathrm{gas}}/R_{\mathrm{e}}$, highlighting the competing roles of turbulence and coplanar inflow in shaping metallicity gradients. Our results provide indirect observational evidence supporting coplanar gas inflow as the driving mechanism for disk evolution.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2025

From Halos to Galaxies. X: Decoding Galaxy SEDs with Physical Priors and Accurate Star Formation History Reconstruction

The spectral energy distribution (SED) of galaxies is essential for deriving fundamental properties like stellar mass and star formation history (SFH). However, conventional methods, including both parametric and non-parametric approaches, often fail to accurately recover the observed cosmic star formation rate (SFR) density due to oversimplified or unrealistic assumptions about SFH and their inability to account for the complex SFH variations across different galaxy populations. To address this issue, we introduce a novel approach that improves galaxy broadband SED analysis by incorporating physical priors derived from hydrodynamical simulations. Tests using IllustrisTNG simulations demonstrate that our method can reliably determine galaxy physical properties from broadband photometry, including stellar mass within 0.05 dex, current SFR within 0.3 dex, and fractional stellar formation time within 0.2 dex, with a negligible fraction of catastrophic failures. When applied to the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) main photometric galaxy sample with spectroscopic redshift, our estimates of stellar mass and SFR are consistent with the widely used MPA-JHU and GSWLC catalogs. Notably, using the derived SFHs of individual SDSS galaxies, we estimate the cosmic SFR density and stellar mass density with remarkable consistency to direct observations up to $z \sim 6$. This demonstrates a significant advancement in deriving SFHs from SEDs that closely align with observational data. Consequently, our method can reliably recover observed spectral indices such as $\rm D_{\rm n}(4000)$ and $\rm Hδ_{\rm A}$ by synthesizing the full spectra of galaxies using the estimated SFHs and metal enrichment histories, relying solely on broadband photometry as input. Furthermore, this method is extremely computationally efficient compared to conventional approaches.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2025

From Halos to Galaxies. VI. Improved halo mass estimation for SDSS groups and measurement of the halo mass function

In $Λ$CDM cosmology, galaxies form and evolve in their host dark matter (DM) halos. Halo mass is crucial for understanding the halo-galaxy connection. The abundance matching (AM) technique has been widely used to derive the halo masses of galaxy groups. However, quenching of the central galaxy can decouple the coevolution of its stellar mass and DM halo mass. Different halo assembly histories can also result in significantly different final stellar mass of the central galaxies. These processes can introduce substantial uncertainties in the halo masses derived from the AM method, particularly leading to a systematic bias between groups with star-forming centrals (blue groups) and passive centrals (red groups). To improve, we developed a new machine learning (ML) algorithm that accounts for these effects and is trained on simulations. Our results show that the ML method eliminates the systematic bias in the derived halo masses for blue and red groups and is, on average, $\sim1/3$ more accurate than the AM method. With careful calibration of observable quantities from simulations and observations from SDSS, we apply our ML model to the SDSS Yang et al. groups to derive their halo masses down to $10^{11.5}\mathrm{M_\odot}$ or even lower. The derived SDSS group halo mass function agrees well with the theoretical predictions, and the derived stellar-to-halo mass relations for both red and blue groups matches well with those obtained from direct weak lensing measurements. These new halo mass estimates enable more accurate investigation of the galaxy-halo connection and the role of the halos in galaxy evolution.

astro-ph.GA↗