arXiv subjects

Lizhi Xie

Publications and source records attributed to Lizhi Xie.

71 records · Page 4Linked to original sources

arXiv2019

The atomic Hydrogen content of the post-reionization Universe

We present a comprehensive analysis of atomic hydrogen (HI) properties using a semi-analytical model of galaxy formation and N-body simulations covering a large cosmological volume at high resolution. We examine the HI mass function and the HI density, characterizing both their redshift evolution and their dependence on hosting halo mass. We analyze the HI content of dark matter haloes in the local Universe and up to redshift $z=5$, discussing the contribution of different galaxy properties. We find that different assembly history plays a crucial role in the scatter of this relation. We propose new fitting functions useful for constructing mock HI maps with HOD techniques. We investigate the HI clustering properties relevant for future $21$~cm Intensity Mapping (IM) experiments, including the HI bias and the shot noise level. The HI bias increases with redshift and it is roughly flat on the largest scales probed. The scale dependency is found at progressively larger scales with increasing redshift, apart from a dip feature at $z=0$. The shot-noise values are consistent with the ones inferred by independent studies, confirming that shot-noise will not be a limiting factor for IM experiments. We detail the contribution from various galaxy properties on the HI power spectrum and their relation to the halo bias. We find that HI poor satellite galaxies play an important role at the scales of the 1-halo term. Finally, we present the $21$~cm signal in redshift space, a fundamental prediction to be tested against data from future radio telescopes such as SKA.

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arXiv2019

The Evolution of Sizes and Specific Angular Momenta in Hierarchical Models of Galaxy Formation and Evolution

We extend our previous work focused at $z\sim0$, studying the redshift evolution of galaxy dynamical properties using the state-of-the-art semi-analytic model GAEA: we show that the predicted size-mass relation for disky/star forming and quiescent galaxies is in good agreement with observational estimates, up to $z\sim2$. Bulge dominated galaxies have sizes that are offset low with respect to observational estimates, mainly due to our implementation of disk instability at high redshift. At large masses, both quiescent and bulge dominated galaxies have sizes smaller than observed. We interpret this as a consequence of our most massive galaxies having larger gas masses than observed, and therefore being more affected by dissipation. We argue that a proper treatment of quasar driven winds is needed to alleviate this problem. Our model compact galaxies have number densities in agreement with observational estimates and they form most of their stars in small and low angular momentum high-$z$ halos. GAEA predicts that a significant fraction of compact galaxies forming at high-$z$ is bound to merge with larger structures at lower redshifts: therefore they are not the progenitors of normal-size passive galaxies at $z=0$. Our model also predicts a stellar-halo size relation that is in good agreement with observational estimates. The ratio between stellar size and halo size is proportional to the halo spin and does not depend on stellar mass but for the most massive galaxies, where AGN feedback leads to a significant decrease of the retention factor (from about 80 per cent to 20 per cent).

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arXiv2018

Structural and Dynamical Properties of Galaxies in a Hierarchical Universe: Sizes and Specific Angular Momenta

We use a state-of-the-art semi-analytic model to study the size and the specific angular momentum of galaxies. Our model includes a specific treatment for the angular momentum exchange between different galactic components. Disk scale radii are estimated from the angular momentum of the gaseous/stellar disk, while bulge sizes are estimated assuming energy conservation. The predicted size--mass and angular momentum--mass relations are in fair agreement with observational measurements in the local Universe, provided a treatment for gas dissipation during major mergers is included. Our treatment for disk instability leads to unrealistically small radii of bulges formed through this channel, and predicts an offset between the size--mass relations of central and satellite early-type galaxies, that is not observed. The model reproduces the observed dependence of the size--mass relation on morphology, and predicts a strong correlation between specific angular momentum and cold gas content. This correlation is a natural consequence of galaxy evolution: gas-rich galaxies reside in smaller halos, and form stars gradually until present day, while gas-poor ones reside in massive halos, that formed most of their stars at early epochs, when the angular momentum of their parent halos is low. The dynamical and structural properties of galaxies can be strongly affected by a different treatment for stellar feedback, as this would modify their star formation history. A higher angular momentum for gas accreted through rapid mode does not affect significantly the properties of massive galaxies today, but has a more important effect on low-mass galaxies at higher redshift.

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arXiv2018

On the influence of environment on star forming galaxies

We use our state-of-the-art semi analytic model for GAlaxy Evolution and Assembly (GAEA), and observational measurements of nearby galaxies to study the influence of the environment on the gas content and gaseous/stellar disc sizes of star-forming galaxies. We analyse the origin of differences between physical properties of satellites and those of their central counterparts, identified by matching the Vmax of their host haloes at the accretion time of the satellites. Our model reproduces nicely the differences between centrals and satellites measured for the HI mass, size of the star-forming region, and stellar radii. In contrast, our model predicts larger differences with respect to data for the molecular gas mass and star formation rate. By analysing the progenitors of central and satellite model galaxies, we find that differences in the gas content arise after accretion, and can be entirely ascribed to the instantaneous stripping of the hot gas reservoir. The suppression of cold gas replenishment via cooling and star formation leads to a reduction of the cold gas and of its density. Therefore, more molecular gas is lost than lower density HI gas, and model satellites have less molecular gas and lower star formation rates than observed satellites. We argue that these disagreements could be largely resolved with the inclusion of a proper treatment for ram-pressure stripping of cold gas and a more gradual stripping of the hot gas reservoir. A more sophisticated treatment of angular momentum exchanges, accounting for the multi-phase nature of the gaseous disc is also required.

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arXiv2018

Bimodal Formation Time Distribution for Infall Dark Matter Halos

We use a 200 $h^{-1}Mpc$ a side N-body simulation to study the mass accretion history (MAH) of dark matter halos to be accreted by larger halos, which we call infall halos. We define a quantity $a_{\rm nf}\equiv (1+z_{\rm f})/(1+z_{\rm peak})$ to characterize the MAH of infall halos, where $z_{\rm peak}$ and $z_{\rm f}$ are the accretion and formation redshifts, respectively. We find that, at given $z_{\rm peak}$, their MAH is bimodal. Infall halos are dominated by a young population at high redshift and by an old population at low redshift. For the young population, the $a_{\rm nf}$ distribution is narrow and peaks at about $1.2$, independent of $z_{\rm peak}$, while for the old population, the peak position and width of the $a_{\rm nf}$ distribution both increases with decreasing $z_{\rm peak}$ and are both larger than those of the young population. This bimodal distribution is found to be closely connected to the two phases in the MAHs of halos. While members of the young population are still in the fast accretion phase at $z_{\rm peak}$, those of the old population have already entered the slow accretion phase at $z_{\rm peak}$. This bimodal distribution is not found for the whole halo population, nor is it seen in halo merger trees generated with the extended Press-Schechter formalism. The infall halo population at $z_{\rm peak}$ are, on average, younger than the whole halo population of similar masses identified at the same redshift. We discuss the implications of our findings in connection to the bimodal color distribution of observed galaxies and to the link between central and satellite galaxies.

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arXiv2018

Variations of the stellar initial mass function in semi-analytical models II: the impact of Cosmic Ray regulation

Recent studies proposed that cosmic rays (CR) are a key ingredient in setting the conditions for star formation, thanks to their ability to alter the thermal and chemical state of dense gas in the UV-shielded cores of molecular clouds. In this paper, we explore their role as regulators of the stellar initial mass function (IMF) variations, using the semi-analytic model for GAlaxy Evolution and Assembly (GAEA). The new model confirms our previous results obtained using the integrated galaxy-wide IMF (IGIMF) theory: both variable IMF models reproduce the observed increase of $α$-enhancement as a function of stellar mass and the measured $z=0$ excess of dynamical mass-to-light ratios with respect to photometric estimates assuming a universal IMF. We focus here on the mismatch between the photometrically-derived ($M^{\rm app}_{\star}$) and intrinsic ($M_{\star}$) stellar masses, by analysing in detail the evolution of model galaxies with different values of $M_{\star}/M^{\rm app}_{\star}$. We find that galaxies with small deviations (i.e. formally consistent with a universal IMF hypothesis) are characterized by more extended star formation histories and live in less massive haloes with respect to the bulk of the galaxy population. While the IGIMF theory does not change significantly the mean evolution of model galaxies with respect to the reference model, a CR-regulated IMF implies shorter star formation histories and higher peaks of star formation for objects more massive than $10^{10.5} M_\odot$. However, we also show that it is difficult to unveil this behaviour from observations, as the key physical quantities are typically derived assuming a universal IMF.

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arXiv2017

H$_2$-based star formation laws in hierarchical models of galaxy formation

We update our recently published model for GAlaxy Evolution and Assembly (GAEA), to include a self-consistent treatment of the partition of cold gas in atomic and molecular hydrogen. Our model provides significant improvements with respect to previous ones used for similar studies. In particular, GAEA (i) includes a sophisticated chemical enrichment scheme accounting for non-instantaneous recycling of gas, metals, and energy; (ii) reproduces the measured evolution of the galaxy stellar mass function; (iii) reasonably reproduces the observed correlation between galaxy stellar mass and gas metallicity at different redshifts. These are important prerequisites for models considering a metallicity dependent efficiency of molecular gas formation. We also update our model for disk sizes and show that model predictions are in nice agreement with observational estimates for the gas, stellar and star forming disks at different cosmic epochs. We analyse the influence of different star formation laws including empirical relations based on the hydro-static pressure of the disk, analytic models, and prescriptions derived from detailed hydro-dynamical simulations. We find that modifying the star formation law does not affect significantly the global properties of model galaxies, neither their distributions. The only quantity showing significant deviations in different models is the cosmic molecular-to-atomic hydrogen ratio, particularly at high redshift. Unfortunately, however, this quantity also depends strongly on the modelling adopted for additional physical processes. Useful constraints on the physical processes regulating star formation can be obtained focusing on low mass galaxies and/or at higher redshift. In this case, self-regulation has not yet washed out differences imprinted at early time.

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arXiv2017

A Universe of Ultra-Diffuse Galaxies: Theoretical Predictions from $Λ$CDM Simulations

A particular population of galaxies have drawn much interest recently, which are as faint as typical dwarf galaxies but have the sizes as large as $L^*$ galaxies, the so called "ultra-diffuse galaxie" (UDGs). The lack of tidal features of UDGs in dense environments suggests that their host halos are perhaps as massive as that of the Milky Way. On the other hand, galaxy formation efficiency should be much higher in the halos of such masses. Here we use the model galaxy catalog generated by populating two large simulations: the Millennium-II cosmological simulation and Phoenix simulations of 9 big clusters with the semi-analytic galaxy formation model. This model reproduces remarkably well the observed properties of UDGs in the nearby clusters, including the abundance, profile, color, and morphology, etc. We search for UDG candidates using the public data and find 2 UDG candidates in our Local Group and 23 in our Local Volume, in excellent agreement with the model predictions. We demonstrate that UDGs are genuine dwarf galaxies, formed in the halos of $\sim 10^{10}M_{\odot}$. It is the combination of the late formation time and high-spins of the host halos that results in the spatially extended feature of this particular population. The lack of tidal disruption features of UDGs in clusters can also be explained by their late infall-time.

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arXiv2017

The galaxy population in cold and warm dark matter cosmologies

We use a pair of high resolution N-body simulations implementing two dark matter models, namely the standard cold dark matter (CDM) cosmogony and a warm dark matter (WDM) alternative where the dark matter particle is a 1.5keV thermal relic. We combine these simulations with the GALFORM semi-analytical galaxy formation model in order to explore differences between the resulting galaxy populations. We use GALFORM model variants for CDM and WDM that result in the same z=0 galaxy stellar mass function by construction. We find that most of the studied galaxy properties have the same values in these two models, indicating that both dark matter scenarios match current observational data equally well. Even in under-dense regions, where discrepancies in structure formation between CDM and WDM are expected to be most pronounced, the galaxy properties are only slightly different. The only significant difference in the local universe we find is in the galaxy populations of "Local Volumes", regions of radius 1 to 8Mpc around simulated Milky Way analogues. In such regions our WDM model provides a better match to observed local galaxy number counts and is five times more likely than the CDM model to predict sub-regions within them that are as empty as the observed Local Void. Thus, a highly complete census of the Local Volume and future surveys of void regions could provide constraints on the nature of dark matter.

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arXiv2016

HI-selected Galaxies in Hierarchical Models of Galaxy Formation and Evolution

In this work, we study the basic statistical properties of HI-selected galaxies extracted from six different semi-analytic models, all run on the same cosmological N-body simulation. One model includes an explicit treatment for the partition of cold gas into atomic and molecular hydrogen. All models considered agree nicely with the measured HI mass function in the local Universe, with the measured scaling relations between HI and galaxy stellar mass, and with the predicted 2-point correlation function for HI rich galaxies. One exception is given by one model that predicts very little HI associated with galaxies in haloes above 10^12 Msun: we argue this is due to a too efficient radio-mode feedback for central galaxies, and to a combination of efficient stellar feedback and instantaneous stripping of hot gas for satellites. We demonstrate that treatment of satellite galaxies introduces large uncertainties at low HI masses. While models assuming non instantaneous stripping of hot gas tend to form satellite galaxies with HI masses slightly smaller than those of centrals with the same stellar mass, instantaneous gas stripping does not translate necessarily in lower HI masses. In fact, the adopted stellar feedback and star formation affect the satellites too. We analyze the relation between HI content and spin of simulated haloes: low spin haloes tend to host HI poor galaxies while high spin haloes are populated by galaxies in a wide range of HI mass. In our simulations, this is due to a correlation between the initial gas disk size and the halo spin.

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arXiv2016

Measuring subhalo mass in redMaPPer clusters with CFHT Stripe 82 Survey

We use the shear catalog from the CFHT Stripe-82 Survey to measure the subhalo masses of satellite galaxies in redMaPPer clusters. Assuming a Chabrier Initial Mass Function (IMF) and a truncated NFW model for the subhalo mass distribution, we find that the sub-halo mass to galaxy stellar mass ratio increases as a function of projected halo-centric radius $r_p$, from $M_{\rm sub}/M_{\rm star}=4.43^{+ 6.63}_{- 2.23}$ at $r_p \in [0.1,0.3]$ $h^{-1}Mpc$ to $M_{\rm sub}/M_{\rm star}=75.40^{+ 19.73}_{- 19.09}$ at $r_p \in [0.6,0.9]$ $h^{-1}Mpc$. We also investigate the dependence of subhalo masses on stellar mass by splitting satellite galaxies into two stellar mass bins: $10<\log(M_{\rm star}/M_{\rm sun})<10.5$ and $11<\log(M_{\rm star}/M_{\rm sun})<12$. The best-fit subhalo mass of the more massive satellite galaxy bin is larger than that of the less massive satellites: $\log(M_{\rm sub}/M_{\rm sun})=11.14 ^{+ 0.66 }_{- 0.73}$ ($M_{\rm sub}/M_{\rm star}=19.5^{+19.8}_{-17.9}$) versus $\log(M_{\rm sub}/M_{\rm sun})=12.38 ^{+ 0.16 }_{- 0.16}$ ($M_{\rm sub}/M_{\rm star}=21.1^{+7.4}_{-7.7}$).

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arXiv2015

Quiescent luminous red galaxies (LRGs) as cosmic chronometers: on the significance of mass and environmental dependence

Massive luminous red galaxies (LRGs) are believed to be evolving passively and can be used as cosmic chronometers to estimate the Hubble constant. However, different LRGs may be located in different environments. The environmental effects may limit the use of the LRGs as cosmic chronometers. We aim to investigate the environmental and mass dependence of the formation of 'quiescent' LRGs selected from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey Date Release 8 and to pave the way for using LRGs as cosmic chronometers. Using the population synthesis software STARLIGHT, we derive the stellar populations in each LRG through the full spectrum fitting and obtain the mean age distribution and the mean star formation history (SFH) of those LRGs. We find that there is no apparent dependence of the mean age and the SFH of quiescent LRGs on their environment, while the ages of those quiescent LRGs depend weakly on their mass. We compare the SFHs of the SDSS LRGs with those obtained from a semi-analytical galaxy formation model, and find that they are roughly consistent with each other if we consider the errors in the STARLIGHT-derived ages. We find that a small fraction of later star formation in LRGs leads to a systematical overestimation (~28 %) of the Hubble constant by the differential age method, and the systematical errors in the STARLIGHT-derived ages may lead to an underestimation (~ 16 %) of the Hubble constant. However, these errors can be corrected by a detailed study of the mean SFH of those LRGs and by calibrating the STARLIGHT-derived ages to those obtained independently by other methods. The environmental effects do not play significant role in the age estimates of quiescent LRGs, and the quiescent LRGs as a population can be used securely as cosmic chronometers.

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arXiv2015

Assembly history of subhalo populations in galactic and cluster sized dark haloes

We make use of two suits of ultra high resolution N-body simulations of individual dark matter haloes from the Phoenix and the Aquarius Projects to investigate systematics of assembly history of subhaloes in dark matter haloes differing by a factor of $1000$ in the halo mass. We have found that real progenitors which built up present day subhalo population are relatively more abundant for high mass haloes, in contrast to previous studies claiming a universal form independent of the host halo mass. That is mainly because of repeated counting of the 're-accreted' (progenitors passed through and were later re-accreted to the host more than once) and inclusion of the 'ejected' progenitor population(progenitors were accreted to the host in the past but no longer members at present day) in previous studies. The typical accretion time for all progenitors vary strongly with the host halo mass, which is typical about $z \sim 5$ for the galactic Aquarius and about $z \sim 3$ for the cluster sized Phoenix haloes. Once these progenitors start to orbit their parent haloes, they rapidly lose their original mass but not their identifiers, more than $55$ ($50$) percent of them survive to present day for the Phoenix(Aquarius) haloes. At given redshift, survival fraction of the accreted subhalo is independent of the parent halo mass, whilst the mass-loss of the subhalo is more efficient in high mass haloes. These systematics results in similarity and difference in the subhalo population in dark matter haloes of different masses at present day.

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arXiv2014

The Size Evolution of Elliptical Galaxies

Recent work has suggested that the amplitude of the size mass relation of massive early type galaxies evolves with redshift. Here we use a semi-analytical galaxy formation model to study the size evolution of massive early type galaxies. We find this model is able to reproduce the amplitude of present day amplitude and slope of the relation between size and stellar mass for these galaxies, as well as its evolution. The amplitude of this relation reflects the typical compactness of dark halos at the time when most of the stars are formed. This link between size and star formation epoch is propagated in galaxy mergers. Mergers of high or moderate mass ratio (less than 1:3) become increasingly important with increasing present day stellar mass for galaxies more massive than $10^{11.4}M_{\odot}$. At lower masses, low mass ratio mergers play a more important role. In situ star formation contribute more to the size growth than it does to stellar mass growth. We also find that, for ETGs identified at $z=2$, minor mergers dominate subsequent growth both for stellar mass and in size, consistent with earlier theoretical results.

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arXiv2014

The Local Void: for or against LCDM?

The emptiness of the Local Void has been put forward as a serious challenge to the current standard paradigm of structure formation in LCDM. We use a high resolution cosmological N-body simulation, the Millennium-II run, combined with a sophisticated semi-analytic galaxy formation model, to explore statistically whether the local void is allowed within our current knowledge of galaxy formation in LCDM. We find that about 15 percent of the Local Group analogue systems (11 of 77) in our simulation are associated with nearby low density regions having size and 'emptiness' similar to those of the observed Local Void. This suggests that, rather than a crisis of the LCDM, the emptiness of the Local Void is indeed a success of the standard LCDM theory. The paucity of faint galaxies in such voids results from a combination of two factors: a lower amplitude of the halo mass function in the voids than in the field, and a lower galaxy formation efficiency in void haloes due to halo assembly bias effects. While the former is the dominated factor, the later also plays a sizable role. The halo assembly bias effect results in a stellar mass fraction 25 percent lower for void galaxies when compared to field galaxies with the same halo mass.

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arXiv2013

Assembly Bias of Dwarf-sized Dark Matter Haloes

Previous studies indicate that assembly bias effects are stronger for lower mass dark matter haloes. Here we make use of high resolution re-simulations of rich clusters and their surroundings from the Phoenix Project and a large volume cosmological simulation, the Millennium-II run, to quantify assembly bias effects on dwarf-sized dark matter haloes. We find that, in the regions around massive clusters, dwarf-sized haloes ($[10^9,10^{11}]\ms$) form earlier ($Δz \sim 2$ in redshift) and possess larger $V_{\rm max}$ ($\sim20%$) than the field galaxies. We find that this environmental dependence is largely caused by tidal interactions between the ejected haloes and their former hosts, while other large scale effects are less important. Finally we assess the effects of assembly bias on dwarf galaxy formation with a sophisticated semi-analytical galaxy formation model. We find that the dwarf galaxies near massive clusters tend to be redder ($Δ(u-r) = 0.5$) and have three times as much stellar mass compared to the field galaxies with the same halo mass. These features should be seen with observational data.

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arXiv2013

BSG alignment of SDSS galaxy groups

We study the alignment signal between the distribution of brightest satellite galaxies (BSGs) and the major axis of their host groups using SDSS group catalog constructed by Yang et al. (2007). After correcting for the effect of group ellipticity, a statistically significant (~ 5σ) major-axis alignment is detected and the alignment angle is found to be 43.0 \pm 0.4 degrees. More massive and richer groups show stronger BSG alignment. The BSG alignment around blue BCGs is slightly stronger than that around red BCGs. And red BSGs have much stronger major-axis alignment than blue BSGs. Unlike BSGs, other satellites do not show very significant alignment with group major axis. We further explore the BSG alignment in semi-analytic model (SAM) constructed by Guo et al. (2011). We found general good agreement with observations: BSGs in SAM show strong major-axis alignment which depends on group mass and richness in the same way as observations; and none of other satellites exhibit prominent alignment. However, discrepancy also exists in that the SAM shows opposite BSG color dependence, which is most probably induced by the missing of large scale environment ingredient in SAM. The combination of two popular scenarios can explain the detected BSG alignment. The first one: satellites merged into the group preferentially along the surrounding filaments, which is strongly aligned with the major axis of the group. The second one: BSGs enter their host group more recently than other satellites, then will preserve more information about the assembling history and so the major-axis alignment. In SAM, we found positive evidence for the second scenario by the fact that BSGs merged into groups statistically more recently than other satellites. On the other hand, although is opposite in SAM, the BSG color dependence in observation might indicate the first scenario as well.

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