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Masanori Iye

Publications and source records attributed to Masanori Iye.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources

The First Systematic Survey for Lyman Alpha Emitters at z=7.3 with Red-sensitive Subaru/Suprime-Cam

We have performed deep imaging surveys for LyA emitters (LAEs) at redshift ~7.3 in two blank fields, the Subaru Deep Field (SDF) and the Subaru/XMM-Newton Deep survey Field (SXDF), using the Subaru/Suprime-Cam equipped with new red-sensitive CCDs and a new narrow-band filter, NB1006 (lambda_c=10052 Ang, FWHM=214 Ang). We identified four objects as LAE candidates that exhibit luminosity excess in NB1006. By carrying out deep follow-up spectroscopy for three of them using Subaru/FOCAS and Keck/DEIMOS, a definitively asymmetric emission line is detected for one of them, SXDF-NB1006-2. Assuming this line is LyA, this object is a LAE at z=7.215 which has luminosity of 1.2^{+1.5}_{-0.6} x 10^43 [erg s-1] and a weighted skewness S_w=4.90+-0.86. Another object, SDF-NB1006-2, shows variable photometry and is thus probably a quasar (QSO) or an active galactic nucleus (AGN). It shows an asymmetric emission line at 10076 Ang, which may be due to either LyA at z=7.288 or [OII] at z=1.703. The third object, SDF-NB1006-1, is likely a galaxy with temporal luminosity enhancement associated with a supernova explosion, as the brightness of this object varies between the observed epochs. Its spectrum does not show any emission lines. The inferred decrease in the number density of LAEs toward higher redshift is n_LyA(z=7.3)/n_LyA(z=5.7) = 0.05^+0.11_-0.05 from z=5.7 to 7.3 down to L(LyA)=1.0 x 10^43 [erg s-1]. The present result is consistent with the interpretation in previous studies that the neutral hydrogen fraction is rapidly increasing from z=5.7 to 7.3.

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Subaru FOCAS survey of z=7-7.1 Lyα emitters: a test for z >~ 7 Lyα photometric luminosity functions

Recent observations of z >~ 7 Lyα emitters (LAEs) have derived a variety of Lyα luminosity functions (LFs) with contradictory results, evolution or non-evolution from z <~ 6, the epoch after reionization. This could be because most of z >~ 7 LFs comprise photometric candidates and might include some contaminations. We conducted the Subaru Telescope Faint Object Camera And Spectrograph narrowband NB980 (λc ~ 9800A, FWHM ~ 100A) imaging and spectroscopy survey of z=7-7.1 LAEs to compare its "contamination-free" result with z >~ 7 photometric Lyα LFs previously derived. We imaged the Subaru Deep Field and the sky around a cluster MS 1520.1+3002 and found one LAE candidate, but spectroscopy did not reveal Lyα though deep enough to detect it. We calculated the expected number of LAEs in our survey, using five z=7 and three z=7.7 Lyα LFs from recent surveys. Seven of them are consistent with null detection (0.1^{+1.8}_{-0.1}-1.1^{+2.2}_{-1.0} LAEs) within errors including Poisson statistics and cosmic variance, but average values (0.7-1.1 LAEs) predicted from one z=7 and two z=7.7 LFs among the seven indicate nearly a single detection. The remaining one z=7 LF predicts 3.0^{+3.2}_{-2.0} LAEs. As to z=7, the discrepancy likely comes from different LAE selection criteria. For z=7.7, there are two possibilities; (1) If z=7.7 LAEs are somehow brighter in Lyα luminosity than lower redshift LAEs, z=7.7 LF is observed to be similar to or higher than lower redshift LFs even if attenuated by neutral hydrogen. (2) All/most of the z=7.7 candidates are not LAEs. This supports the decline of LF from z ~ 6 to 7.7 and reionization at z ~ 6-7.7.

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A large scale structure traced by [OII] emitters hosting a distant cluster at z=1.62

We present a panoramic narrow-band imaging survey of [OII] emitters in and around the ClG J0218.3-0510 cluster at z=1.62 with Suprime-Cam on Subaru telescope. 352 [OII] emitters were identified on the basis of narrow-band excesses and photometric redshifts. We discovered a huge filamentary structure with some clumps traced by [OII] emitters and found that the ClG J0218.3-0510 cluster is embedded in an even larger super-structure than the one reported previously. 31 [OII] emitters were spectroscopically confirmed with the detection of H-alpha and/or [OIII] emission lines by FMOS observations. In the high density regions such as cluster core and clumps, star-forming [OII] emitters show a high overdensity by a factor of more than 10 compared to the field region. Although the star formation activity is very high even in the cluster core, some massive quiescent galaxies also exits at the same time. Furthermore, the properties of the individual [OII] emitters, such as star formation rates, stellar masses and specific star formation rates, do not show a significant dependence on the local density, either. Such lack of environmental dependence is consistent with our earlier result by Hayashi et al. (2011) on a z=1.5 cluster and its surrounding region. The fact that the star-forming activity of galaxies in the cluster core is as high as that in the field at z~1.6 may suggest that the star-forming galaxies are probably just in a transition phase from a starburst mode to a quiescent mode, and are thus showing comparable level of star formation rates to those in lower density environments. We may be witnessing the start of the reversal of the local SFR--density relation due to the "biased" galaxy formation and evolution in high density regions at high this redshift, beyond which massive galaxies would be forming vigorously in a more biased way in proto-cluster cores.

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Suppresion of Self-Phase Modulation in a Laser Transfer System using Optical Fiber on the Subaru Telescope

We are developing the Laser Guide Star Adaptive Optics (LGS/AO188) system for the Subaru Telescope at Mauna Kea, Hawaii. This system utilizes a combination of an all-solid-state mode-locked sum-frequency generation (SFG) laser (1.7-GHz bandwidth, 0.7-ns pulse width) as a light source and a single-mode optical fiber for beam transference. However, optical fibers induce nonlinear effects, especially self-phase modulation (SPM). We studied SPM in our photonic crystal fiber (PCF). SPM broadens the spectrum of a laser beam and decrease the efficiency of bright laser guide star generation. We measured the spectrum width using a spectrum analyzer. We found a spectrum width of 8.4 GHz at full width at half maximum (FWHM). The original FWHM of our laser spectrum was 1.4 GHz. This was equivalent to a 70 % loss in laser energy. We also measured the brightness of the sodium cell and evaluated its performance as a function of laser wavelength. The cell's brightness showed a peculiar tendency; specifically, it did not extinguish even though the wavelength varied by more than 5 pm. To reduce the impact of SPM, we developed an optical system that divides one laser pulse into four lower-power pulses. The laser peak power after passing through the new optical system was decreased to one-fourth the original, reducing the impact of SPM on the sodium cell. An actual laser guide star created with the new system was 0.41 mag brighter than the laser guide star created with the original system. We achieved brighter laser guide star generation by dividing a laser pulse to reduce its peak intensity. This is an effective method for laser relay using optical fiber.

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Dust Attenuation and H-alpha Star Formation Rates of z~0.5 Galaxies

Using deep narrow-band and broad-band imaging, we identify 401 z~0.40 and 249 z~0.49 H-alpha line-emitting galaxies in the Subaru Deep Field. Compared to other H-alpha surveys at similar redshifts, our samples are unique since they probe lower H-alpha luminosities, are augmented with multi-wavelength (rest-frame 1000AA--1.5 microns) coverage, and a large fraction (20%) of our samples has already been spectroscopically confirmed. Our spectra allow us to measure the Balmer decrement for nearly 60 galaxies with H-beta detected above 5-sigma. The Balmer decrements indicate an average extinction of A(H-alpha)=0.7^{+1.4}_{-0.7} mag. We find that the Balmer decrement systematically increases with higher H-alpha luminosities and with larger stellar masses, in agreement with previous studies with sparser samples. We find that the SFRs estimated from modeling the spectral energy distribution (SED) is reliable---we derived an "intrinsic" H-alpha luminosity which is then reddened assuming the color excess from SED modeling. The SED-predicted H-alpha luminosity agrees with H-alpha narrow-band measurements over 3 dex (rms of 0.25 dex). We then use the SED SFRs to test different statistically-based dust corrections for H-alpha and find that adopting one magnitude of extinction is inappropriate: galaxies with lower luminosities are less reddened. We find that the luminosity-dependent dust correction of Hopkins et al. yields consistent results over 3 dex (rms of 0.3 dex). Our comparisons are only possible by assuming that stellar reddening is roughly half of nebular reddening. The strong correspondence argue that with SED modeling, we can derive reliable intrinsic SFRs even in the absence of H-alpha measurements at z~0.5.

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Subaru Studies of the Cosmic Dawn

An overview on the current status of the census of the early universe population is given. Observational surveys of high redshift objects provide direct opportunities to study the early epoch of the Universe. The target population included are Lyman Alpha Emitters (LAE), Lyman Break Galaxies (LBG), gravitationally lensed galaxies, quasars and gamma-ray bursts (GRB). The basic properties of these objects and the methods used to study them are reviewed. The present paper highlights the fact that the Subaru Telescope group made significant contributions in this field of science to elucidate the epoch of the cosmic dawn and to improve the understanding of how and when infant galaxies evolve into mature ones.

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Search for z~7 Ly-alpha emitters with Suprime-Cam at the Subaru Telescope

We report a search for z=7 Ly-alpha emitters (LAEs) using a custom-made Narrow-Band filter, centered at 9755 Angstroms, with the instrument Suprime-Cam installed at the Subaru telescope. We observed two different fields and obtained two sample of 7 Ly-alpha emitters of which 4 are robust in each field. We are covering the luminosity range of 9.10^{42} - 2.10^{43} erg/s in comoving volumes of ~ 4.10^{5} and 4.3.10^{5} Mpc^{3}. From this result, we derived possible z~7 Ly-alpha luminosity functions for the full samples and for a subsample of 4 objects in each field. We do not observe, in each case, any strong evolution between the z=6.5 and z~7 Ly-alpha luminosity functions. Spectroscopic confirmation for these candidate samples is required to establish a definitive measure of the luminosity function at z~7.

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SDSS J133401.39+331534.3: A New Subarcsecond Gravitationally Lensed Quasar

The quasar SDSS J133401.39+331534.3 at z = 2.426 is found to be a two-image gravitationally lensed quasar with the image separation of 0.833. The object is first identified as a lensed quasar candidate in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey Quasar Lens Search, and then confirmed as a lensed system from follow-up observations at the Subaru and University of Hawaii 2.2-meter telescopes. We estimate the redshift of the lensing galaxy to be 0.557 based on absorption lines in the quasar spectra as well as the color of the galaxy. In particular, we observe the system with the Subaru Telescope AO188 adaptive optics with laser guide star, in order to derive accurate astrometry, which well demonstrates the usefulness of the laser guide star adaptive optics imaging for studying strong lens systems. Our mass modeling with improved astrometry implies that a nearby bright galaxy $\sim 4"$ apart from the lensing galaxy is likely to affect the lens potential.

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Completing the Census of Ly-alpha Emitters at the Reionization Epoch

We carried out extended spectroscopic confirmations of Ly-alpha emitters (LAEs) at z=6.5 and 5.7 in the Subaru Deep Field. Now, the total number of spectroscopically confirmed LAEs is 45 and 54 at z=6.5 and 5.7, respectively, and at least 81% (70%) of our photometric candidates at z=6.5 (5.7) have been spectroscopically identified as real LAEs. We made careful measurements of the Ly-alpha luminosity, both photometrically and spectroscopically, to accurately determine the Ly-alpha and rest-UV luminosity functions (LFs). The substantially improved evaluation of the Ly-alpha LF at z=6.5 shows an apparent deficit from z=5.7 at least at the bright end, and a possible decline even at the faint end, though small uncertainties remain. The rest-UV LFs at z=6.5 and 5.7 are in good agreement, at least at the bright end, in clear contrast to the differences seen in the Ly-alpha LF. These results imply an increase in the neutral fraction of the intergalactic medium from z=5.7 to 6.5. The rest-frame equivalent width (EW_0) distribution at z=6.5 seems to be systematically smaller than z=5.7, and it shows an extended tail toward larger EW_0. The bright end of the rest-UV LF can be reproduced from the observed Ly-alpha LF and a reasonable EW_0-UV luminosity relation. Integrating this rest-UV LF provides the first measurement of the contribution of LAEs to the photon budget required for reionization. The derived UV LF suggests that the fractional contribution of LAEs to the photon budget among Lyman break galaxies significantly increases towards faint magnitudes. Low-luminosity LAEs could dominate the ionizing photon budget, though this inference depends strongly on the uncertain faint-end slope of the Ly-alpha LF.

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Cryogenic Volume-Phase Holograpic Grisms for MOIRCS

We have developed high dispersion VPH (volume phase holographic) grisms with zinc selenide (ZnSe) prisms for the cryogenic optical system of MOIRCS (Multi-Object near InfraRed Camera and Spectrograph) for Y-, J-, H- and K- band observations. We fabricated the VPH gratings using a hologram resin. After several heat cycles at between room temperature and 120 K, the VPH gratings were assembled to grisms by gluing with two ZnSe prisms. Several heat cycles were also carried out for the grisms before being installed into MOIRCS. We measured the efficiencies of the VPH grisms in a laboratory, and found them to be 70% - 82%. The performances obtained by observations of MOIRCS with the 8.2 m Subaru Telescope have been found to be very consistent with the results in the laboratory test. This is the first astronomical application of cryogenic VPH grisms.

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Grisms Developed for FOCAS

Faint Object Camera and Spectrograph (FOCAS) is a versatile common-use optical instrument for the 8.2m Subaru Telescope, offering imaging and spectroscopic observations. FOCAS employs grisms with resolving powers ranging from 280 to 8200 as dispersive optical elements. A grism is a direct-vision grating composed of a transmission grating and prism(s). FOCAS has five grisms with replica surface-relief gratings including an echelle-type grism, and eight grisms with volume-phase holographic (VPH) gratings. The size of these grisms is 110 mm X 106 mm in aperture with a maximum thickness of 110 mm. We employ not only the dichromated gelatin, but also the hologram resin as a recording material for VPH gratings. We discuss the performance of these FOCAS grisms measured in the laboratory, and verify it by test observations, and show examples of astronomical spectroscopic observations.

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Statistics of 207 Lya Emitters at a Redshift Near 7: Constraints on Reionization and Galaxy Formation Models

We present Lya luminosity function (LF), clustering measurements, and Lya line profiles based on the largest sample, to date, of 207 Lya emitters (LAEs) at z=6.6 on the 1-deg^2 sky of Subaru/XMM-Newton Deep Survey (SXDS) field. Our z=6.6 Lya LF including cosmic variance estimates yields the best-fit Schechter parameters of phi*=8.5 +3.0/-2.2 x10^(-4) Mpc^(-3) and L*(Lya)=4.4 +/-0.6 x10^42 erg s^(-1) with a fixed alpha=-1.5, and indicates a decrease from z=5.7 at the >~90% confidence level. However, this decrease is not large, only =~30% in Lya luminosity, which is too small to be identified in the previous studies. A clustering signal of z=6.6 LAEs is detected for the first time. We obtain the correlation length of r_0=2-5 h^(-1) Mpc and bias of b=3-6, and find no significant boost of clustering amplitude by reionization at z=6.6. The average hosting dark halo mass inferred from clustering is 10^10-10^11 Mo, and duty cycle of LAE population is roughly ~1% albeit with large uncertainties. The average of our high-quality Keck/DEIMOS spectra shows an FWHM velocity width of 251 +/-16 km s^(-1). We find no large evolution of Lya line profile from z=5.7 to 6.6, and no anti-correlation between Lya luminosity and line width at z=6.6. The combination of various reionization models and our observational results about the LF, clustering, and line profile indicates that there would exist a small decrease of IGM's Lya transmission owing to reionization, but that the hydrogen IGM is not highly neutral at z=6.6. Our neutral-hydrogen fraction constraint implies that the major reionization process took place at z>~7.

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Overdensity of i'-Dropout Galaxies in the Subaru Deep Field: A Candidate Protocluster at z ~ 6

We investigate the sky distribution of z ~ 6 Lyman break galaxies selected as i'-dropouts having i' - z' > 1.45 down to z' < 26.5 in the Subaru Deep Field (SDF). We discover 37 i'-dropouts clustered in a projected comoving 21.6 x 21.6 Mpc^2 region at z = 6, showing a local density excess. Carrying out follow-up spectroscopy, we identify four of them as Lyman-alpha emitters at z = 5.92, 6.01, 6.03 and 6.03 (spread over a distance of 46.6 Mpc). The number density of the cluster itself in SDF is ~ 2.2 x 10^{-7} Mpc^{-3}, smaller than those of protoclusters (i.e., forming galaxy clusters) at z ~ 2-5.7. Also, the structure shows ~4-21 times larger galaxy number density than those of z ~ 6 galaxies in a general field. It has a mass of M ~ 1.5^{+1.8}_{-0.5} x 10^{15}M_sun, comparable to those of z ~ 0-5 protoclusters. Since the contamination of our sample by interlopers is estimated to be quite low, 5.9%, most of the other unconfirmed i'-dropouts in the overdense region can be also z ~ 6 galaxies. Hence, it could be a candidate forming cluster at z ~ 6, representing a progenitor of galaxy clusters seen in the recent-day Universe.

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Lyman Alpha Emitters at z=7 in the Subaru/XMM-Newton Deep Survey Field: Photometric Candidates and Luminosity Function

We conducted a deep narrowband NB973 (FWHM = 200 A centered at 9755 A) survey of z=7 Lyman alpha emitters (LAEs) in the Subaru/XMM-Newton Deep Survey Field, using the fully depleted CCDs newly installed on the Subaru Telescope Suprime-Cam, which is twice more sensitive to z=7 Lyman alpha at ~ 1 micron than the previous CCDs. Reaching the depth 0.5 magnitude deeper than our previous survey in the Subaru Deep Field that led to the discovery of a z=6.96 LAE, we detected three probable z=7 LAE candidates. Even if all the candidates are real, the Lyman alpha luminosity function (LF) at z=7 shows a significant deficit from the LF at z=5.7 determined by previous surveys. The LAE number and Lyman alpha luminosity densities at z=7 is ~ 7.7-54% and ~5.5-39% of those at z=5.7 to the Lyman alpha line luminosity limit of L(Ly-alpha) >~ 9.2 x 10^{42} erg s^{-1}. This could be due to evolution of the LAE population at these epochs as a recent galaxy evolution model predicts that the LAE modestly evolves from z=5.7 to 7. However, even after correcting for this effect of galaxy evolution on the decrease in LAE number density, the z=7 Lyman alpha LF still shows a deficit from z=5.7 LF. This might reflect the attenuation of Lyman alpha emission by neutral hydrogen remaining at the epoch of reionization and suggests that reionization of the universe might not be complete yet at z=7. If we attribute the density deficit to reionization, the intergalactic medium (IGM) transmission for Lyman alpha photons at z=7 would be 0.4 <= T_{Ly-alpha}^{IGM} <= 1, supporting the possible higher neutral fraction at the earlier epochs at z > 6 suggested by the previous surveys of z=5.7-7 LAEs, z ~ 6 quasars and z > 6 gamma-ray bursts.

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Spitzer Space Telescope Constraint on the Stellar Mass of a z = 6.96 Lyman Alpha Emitter

We obtained mid-infrared 3.6 and 4.5 micron imaging of a z=6.96 Lyman alpha emitter (LAE) IOK-1 discovered in the Subaru Deep Field, using Spitzer Space Telescope Infrared Array Camera observations. After removal of a nearby bright source, we find that IOK-1 is not significantly detected in any of these infrared bands to m_3.6 ~ 24.00 and m_4.5 ~ 23.54 at 3 sigma. Fitting population synthesis models to the spectral energy distribution consisting of the upper limit fluxes of the optical to infrared non-detection images and fluxes in detection images, we constrain the stellar mass M* of IOK-1. This LAE could have either a mass as low as M* <~ 2-9 x 10^8 Msun for the young age (<~ 10 Myr) and the low dust reddening (A_V ~ 0) or a mass as large as M* <~ 1-4 x 10^{10} Msun for either the old age (> 100 Myr) or the high dust reddening (A_V ~ 1.5). This would be within the range of masses of z ~ 3-6.6 LAEs studied to date, ~ 10^6-10^{10} Msun. Hence, IOK-1 is not a particularly unique galaxy with extremely high mass or low mass but is similar to one of the LAEs seen at the later epochs.

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Spectropolarimetry of Extremely Luminous Type Ia Supernova 2009dc: Nearly Spherical Explosion of Super-Chandrasekhar Mass White Dwarf

We present the first spectropolarimetric observations of a candidate of super-Chandrasekhar mass Type Ia supernova (SN): SN 2009dc. The observations were performed at 5.6 and 89.5 days after the B-band maximum. The data taken at the later epoch are used to determine the interstellar polarization. Continuum polarization is found to be small (<0.3 %), indicating that the explosion is nearly spherically symmetric. This fact suggests that a very aspherical explosion is not a likely scenario for SN 2009dc. Polarization at the Si II and Ca II lines clearly shows a loop in the Q-U plane, indicating a non-axisymmetric, clumpy distribution of intermediate-mass elements. The degree of line polarization at the Si and Ca line is moderate (0.5% +- 0.1% and 0.7% +- 0.1%, respectively), but it is higher than expected from the trend of other Type Ia SNe. This may suggest that there are thick enough, clumpy Si-rich layers above the thick 56Ni-rich layers (>~ 1.2 Msun). The observed spectropolarimetric properties, combined with the photometric and spectroscopic properties, suggest that the progenitor of SN 2009dc has a super-Chandrasekhar mass, and that the explosion geometry is globally spherically symmetric, with clumpy distribution of intermediate-mass elements.

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National Astronomical Observatory of Japan

National Astronomical Observatory is an inter-university institute serving as the national center for ground based astronomy offering observational facilities covering the optical, infrared, radio wavelength domain. NAOJ also has solar physics and geo-lunar science groups collaborating with JAXA for space missions and a theoretical group with computer simulation facilities. The outline of NAOJ, its various unique facilities, and some highlights of recent science achievements are reviewed.

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A massive disk galaxy at z>3 along the sightline of QSO 1508+5714

We have obtained deep images in the BVRIJHKs bands of the field centered on QSO 1508+5714 (z_{em} =4.28) with the Suprime camera, FOCAS and MOIRCS cameras on Subaru telescope. We report here the detection of a B-dropout galaxy, which is $3\secpoint 5$ north-west of the QSO sightline. A photometric redshift analysis is presented to complement the color selection. Given the photometric properties of this object ($M = -22.2$, making $ L\approx 3 L^{\ast}$, if placed at its photometric redshift $z\sim 3.5$), as well as the S$\acute{e}$rsic index ($ n \sim 1$) derived from a 2-D imaging decomposition of the HST WFPC2 image taken in the $I_{F814}$ filter, the identified system is consistent with a massive disk galaxy at z>3. If confirmed, it would be one of the most distant massive disk galaxies known so far.

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