arXiv subjects

Seyoung Jeon

Publications and source records attributed to Seyoung Jeon.

14 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2025

On the Origin of Intracluster Light based on the High-resolution Simulation, NewCluster

Intracluster light (ICL) is a key component of galaxy clusters, with the potential to trace their dynamical assembly histories and the underlying dark matter distribution. Despite these prospects, its faint nature makes a consensus on its origin or population properties difficult to achieve, both in observations and simulations. In the hope of finding a breakthrough, we utilize the ongoing high-resolution cluster simulation, NewCluster. By classifying billions of particles in and around the cluster with a rigorous tracking procedure, we find that the majority of the ICL originates from satellites, including surviving and disrupted galaxies. Another notable finding is that the preprocessed component follows the density profile of dark matter better than the other components and has distinctive properties: old age, low metallicity, and enhanced $α$-element abundance. We further investigate the orbital dynamics, and our results demonstrate that the stripped fraction of satellites is primarily determined by the time since infall and the pericenter distance. By linking the demographic, chemical, and orbital properties of ICL stars to their origins, this work proposes a quantitative approach for tracing the assembly history of galaxy clusters from the ICL.

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arXiv2025

On the Origin of Gas-stripping of Galaxies in Group Environments

We investigate how low-mass group environments ($M_{\rm vir} \sim 10^{12-13}\,M_{\odot}$) influence the gas content of their satellite galaxies with $M_* > 10^{7}\,M_{\odot}$ using the \NHtwo\ simulation. Many satellite galaxies preserve substantial gas reservoirs, yet show signs of outer gas stripping, reminiscent of jellyfish galaxies in clusters. In contrast, low-mass satellites ($<10^8 \, M_{\odot}$) are largely gas-deficient, and some of them undergo gas removal within their host group by external pressure triggered by either galaxy interactions or ram pressure exerted by the hot intragroup medium. Complete gas removal in these satellite galaxies occurs when the external hydrodynamic pressure exceeds the gravitational restoring force, typically due to stochastic events such as galaxy-galaxy interaction or nearby galactic outflows. The emergence of a characteristic stellar mass of $10^8 \, M_{\odot}$ which determines the efficiency of gas removal in groups, likely reflects the differing scaling relations of external pressure with halo mass and gravitational restoring force with stellar mass. While tidal interactions can be a significant cause of gas loss in satellite galaxies, those severe enough to affect the gas content in the central regions typically lead to the complete disruption of the galaxy. Consequently, gas loss driven by tidal interactions may be underestimated in the studies focusing solely on surviving galaxies. Group environments, where environmental effects are weaker and satellite galaxies tend to have lower restoring forces due to their low masses, exhibit complex manifestations of gas loss that are not seen in more massive environments such as clusters.

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arXiv2025

Introducing NewCluster: the first half of the history of a high-resolution cluster simulation

We introduce NewCluster, a new high-resolution cluster simulation designed to serve as the massive halo counterpart of the modern cosmological galaxy evolution framework. The zoom-in simulation targets a volume of $4.1σ$ overdensity region, which is expected to evolve into a galaxy cluster with a virial mass of $5 \times 10^{14} M_\odot$, comparable to that of the Virgo Cluster. The zoom-in volume extends out to 3.5 virial radii from the central halo. The novelties of NewCluster are found in its resolutions. Its stellar mass resolution of $2 \times 10^{4} M_\odot$ is effective for tracing the early assembly of massive galaxies as well as the formation of dwarf galaxies. The spatial resolution of 68 parsecs in the best-resolved regions in the adaptive-mesh-refinement approach is powerful to study the detailed kinematic structure of galaxies. The time interval between snapshots is also exceptionally short-15 Myr-which is ideal for monitoring changes in the physical properties of galaxies, particularly during their orbital motion within a larger halo. The simulation has up-to-date feedback schemes for supernovae and active galactic nuclei. The chemical evolution is calculated for ten elements, along with dust calculation that includes the formation, size change, and destruction. To overcome the limitations of the Eulerian approach used for gas dynamics in this study, we employ Monte Carlo-based tracer particles in NewCluster, enabling a wide range of scientific investigations.

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arXiv2025

Roles of Supernova and Active Galactic Nucleus Feedback in Shaping the Baryonic Content in a Wide Range of Dark Matter Halo Masses

We build upon FEGA25 (Contini et al 2025), a previously introduced semi-analytic model for galaxy formation and evolution, focusing on its enhanced treatment of supernova and active galactic nucleus feedback mechanisms. In addition to the traditional AGN feedback modes, negative (suppressing cooling), and the new positive mode (triggering star formation), we introduce two implementations of a third mode: the ejection of hot gas beyond the virial radius, AGNeject1 and AGNeject2. This component addresses a longstanding issue in semi-analytic models and hydrodynamical simulations: the overestimation of hot gas fractions in low and intermediate mass halos. FEGA25 is calibrated via MCMC using a suite of cosmological N-body simulations YS50HR, YS200, and YS300, and a comprehensive set of observed stellar mass functions across a wide redshift range. We find that supernova feedback dominates gas ejection in halos with logM_{halo} < approximately 12, while AGN feedback becomes increasingly important at higher halo masses. The AGNeject2 model, which activates primarily at late times, redshift < 1, reproduces a characteristic cavity, a U shaped feature in the baryon fraction at redshift zero, similar to trends observed in simulations like SIMBA and IllustrisTNG. Conversely, AGNeject1 yields a smoother, redshift independent evolution. Both models preserve the stellar and cold gas components and successfully reproduce the stellar to halo mass relation up to redshift 3. Our results emphasize that a physically motivated AGN driven mechanism capable of selectively removing hot gas is essential to accurately model the baryon cycle, particularly in intermediate halo mass regimes.

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arXiv2025

How Dust Models Shape High-z Galaxy Morphology: Insights from the NewCluster Simulation

Dust plays a pivotal role in shaping the observed morphology of galaxies. While traditional cosmological simulations often assume a fixed dust-to-gas (DTG) or dust-to-metal (DTM) mass ratio to model dust effects, recent advancements have enabled on-the-fly (OTF) dust modeling that captures the spatial and temporal evolution of dust. In this work, we investigate the impact of dust modeling on galaxy morphology using the NewCluster simulation, which implements a detailed OTF dust model. We generate mock images of NewCluster galaxies under both OTF and fixed DTM models using the radiative transfer code SKIRT, and compare their morphology to JWST observations. We measure morphology indices and use the $G-M_{20}$ test to classify galaxies. We find that the OTF galaxy models exhibit brighter centers and more pronounced bulges than those of the fixed DTM models, resulting in a lower late-type galaxy (LTG) fraction, particularly at high redshifts. This central brightening is linked to a phenomenon we refer to as the DTM cavity, a localized depression in the DTM ratio driven by intense bulge starbursts. Our results highlight the importance of modeling dust evolution in a physically motivated manner, as fixed DTM models fail to capture key morphological features.

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arXiv2025

Born to be Starless: Revisiting the Missing Satellite Problem

The massive Local Group galaxies both host substantially fewer satellites than the subhalos expected from the cold dark matter paradigm, and the recent investigations have highlighted the interplay between baryons and dark matter. We investigate the processes that make subhalos starless, using high-resolution cosmological simulations. We found that the number of satellites around Milky Way analogs closely aligns with observations, which accords with recent studies. In our simulations, the majority of subhalos are devoid of stars, i.e., "starless." We first examined supernova feedback and the environmental effects associated with subhalos' orbital motion as candidates of origin. However, neither seems to be the main driver. Supernova feedback causes a reduction of cold gas in "starred" subhalos, but its impact is not significant. In the case of starless subhalos, supernova feedback is irrelevant because most of them do not have in-situ star formation in the first place. The orbital motion in dense environments causes gas removal in all subhalos but is not enough to remove pre-existing stars. The key is found to be the effect of reionization instead. Starless subhalos are initially born in regions that are less efficient in accreting matter. This makes them lack sufficiently dense gas to self-shield from UV background heating, preventing their gas from cooling below the star formation threshold. This indicates that starless subhalos are not made but born.

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arXiv2025

A Full AGN Feedback Prescription for Numerical Models: Negative, Positive and Hot Gas-Ejection Modes

We build upon the state-of-the-art semi-analytic model \texttt{FEGA24} (Formation and Evolution of GAlaxies, \citealt{contini2024d}), which integrates the latest prescriptions relevant to galaxy formation and evolution, alongside a comprehensive AGN feedback model. This model incorporates three modes of feedback: negative (preventing excessive cooling), positive (enhancing star formation), and hot gas ejection (expelling gas beyond the virial radius of halos). These modes operate in a coordinated manner: the negative mode regulates the cooling process, the positive mode promotes bursts of star formation, and the hot gas ejection mode expels gas beyond the virial radius when the AGN is sufficiently powerful. Our updated semi-analytic model, \texttt{FEGA25}, retains the qualitative and quantitative consistency of the analyses presented in \cite{contini2024d}, while delivering more robust results. Notably, \texttt{FEGA25} provides a more detailed characterization of the fraction of passive galaxies as a function of stellar mass and redshift, predicts a main sequence of star-forming galaxies more consistent with observations and a more accurate cosmic star formation rate density with redshift. Moreover, it estimates the fraction of hot gas in halos closer to observed values. These findings underscore the importance of a physical mechanism capable of ejecting hot gas beyond the virialized region of dark matter halos without significantly altering the stellar and cold gas components. Such a mechanism is crucial to ensure the proper functioning of other processes, such as cooling and star formation. Since supernova feedback is already modeled at its maximum efficiency, AGN feedback emerges as the natural candidate for this role.

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arXiv2024

Exploring lenticular galaxy formation in field environments using NewHorizon: evidence for counter-rotating gas accretion as a formation channel

The formation pathways of lenticular galaxies (S0s) in field environments remain a matter of debate. We utilize the cosmological hydrodynamic simulation, NewHorizon, to investigate the issue. We select two massive star-formation quenched S0s as our main sample. By closely tracing their physical and morphological evolution, we identify two primary formation channels: mergers and counter-rotating gas accretion. The former induces central gas inflow due to gravitational and hydrodynamic torques, triggering active central star formation which quickly depletes the gas of the galaxy. Counter-rotating gas accretion overall has a similar outcome but more exclusively through hydrodynamic collisions between the pre-existing and newly-accreted gas. Both channels lead to S0 morphology, with gas angular momentum cancellation being a crucial mechanism. These formation pathways quench star formation on a short timescale (< Gyr) compared to the timescales of environmental effects. We also discuss how counter-rotating gas accretion may explain the origin of S0s with ongoing star formation and the frequently observed gas-star misaligned kinematics in S0s.

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arXiv2024

Brightest Cluster Galaxies and the Intracluster Light

In this chapter, we delve into the formation and primary characteristics of two significant components within galaxy clusters: the brightest cluster galaxies (BCGs) and the intracluster light (ICL). Drawing upon recent and pertinent studies in the field, we explore the mechanisms driving their growth from high redshift to the present day, i.e., mergers and stellar stripping. Mergers between satellite galaxies and the BCGs account for a significant amount of ICL, as well as stellar stripping which is responsible for the formation of the bulk of it. We also examine how these formation mechanisms are intertwined with the dynamical state of their host clusters, suggesting their potential utility as luminous tracers of dark matter.

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arXiv2024

The Impact of Positive AGN Feedback on the Properties of Galaxies in a Semi-Analytic Model of Galaxy Formation

We introduce the state-of-the-art semi-analytic model {\small FEGA} (Formation and Evolution of GAlaxies), which incorporates updated prescriptions for key physical processes in galaxy formation. Notably, {\small FEGA} features an unprecedented semi-analytic modeling of positive Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN) feedback. The model combines the latest prescriptions for gas infall and cooling, a revised star formation recipe that incorporates the extended Kennicutt-Schmidt relation, disk instability, updated supernovae feedback, reincorporation of ejected gas, hot gas stripping from satellite galaxies, and the formation of diffuse light. A novel description of AGN feedback is introduced, describing the positive mode as a burst of star formation from a cooling gas fraction. {\small FEGA} is rigorously calibrated using an MCMC procedure to match the evolution of the stellar mass function from high redshift to the present. Subsequently, the model is tested against several observed and predicted scaling relations, including the star formation rate-mass, black hole-bulge and stellar mass, stellar-to-halo mass, and red fraction-mass relations. Additionally, we test {\small FEGA} against other galaxy properties such as the distribution of specific star formation rates, stellar metallicity and morphology. Our results demonstrate that the inclusion of positive AGN feedback can co-exist with its negative counterpart without drastic alterations to other prescriptions. Importantly, this inclusion improves the ability of the model to describe the primary scaling relations observed in galaxies.

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arXiv2024

On the Origin of Star Formation Quenching of Galaxies in Group Environments using the NewHorizon simulation

We study star formation (SF) quenching of satellite galaxies with $M_{*} > 10^7\,M_{\odot}$ within two low-mass groups ($M_{\rm vir}=10^{12.9}$ and $10^{12.7} \,M_{\odot}$) using the NewHorizon simulation. We confirm that satellite galaxies ($M_{*}\lesssim10^{10}\,M_{\odot}$) are more prone to quenching than their field counterparts. This quenched fraction decreases with increasing stellar mass, consistent with recent studies. Similar to the findings in cluster environments, we note a correlation between the orbital motions of galaxies within these groups and the phenomenon of SF quenching. Specifically, SF is suppressed at the group center, and for galaxies with $M_{*} > 10^{9.1}\,M_{\odot}$, there is often a notable rejuvenation phase following a temporary quenching period. The SF quenching at the group center is primarily driven by changes in star formation efficiency and the amount of gas available, both of which are influenced by hydrodynamic interactions between the interstellar medium and surrounding hot gas within the group. Conversely, satellite galaxies with $M_{*} < 10^{8.2}\,M_{\odot}$ experience significant gas removal within the group, leading to SF quenching. Our analysis highlights the complexity of SF quenching in satellite galaxies in group environments, which involves an intricate competition between the efficiency of star formation (which depends on the dynamical state of the gas) on the one hand, and the availability of cold dense gas on the other hand. This challenges the typical understanding of environmental effects based on gas stripping through ram pressure, suggesting a need for a new description of galaxy evolution under mild environmental effects.

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arXiv2023

The Connection between the Intracluster Light and its Host Halo: Formation Time and Contribution from Different Channels

We extend the analysis presented in \cite{contini2023a} to higher redshifts, up to $z=2$, by focusing on the relation between the intracluster light (ICL) fraction and the halo mass, its dependence with redshift, role played by the halo concentration and formation time, in a large sample of simulated galaxy groups/clusters with $13\lesssim \log M_{halo} \lesssim 15$. Moreover, a key focus is to isolate the relative contributions provided by the main channels for the ICL formation to the total amount. The ICL fraction at higher redshift is weakly dependent on halo mass, and comparable with that at the present time, in agreement with recent observations. Stellar stripping, mergers and pre-processing are the major responsible channels of the ICL formation, with stellar stripping that accounts for $\sim 90\%$ of the total ICL, regardless of halo mass and redshift. Pre-processing is an important process for clusters to accrete already formed ICL. The diffuse component forms very early, $z\sim 0.6$, and its formation depends on both concentration and formation time of the halo, with more concentrated and earlier formed haloes that assemble their ICL earlier than later formed ones. The efficiency of this process is independent of halo mass, but increases with decreasing redshift, which implies that stellar stripping becomes more important with time as the concentration increases. This highlights the link between the ICL and the dynamical state of a halo: groups/clusters that have a higher fraction of diffuse light are more concentrated, relaxed and in an advanced stage of growth.

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arXiv2023

The MAGPI Survey: Impact of environment on the total internal mass distribution of galaxies in the last 5 Gyr

We investigate the impact of environment on the internal mass distribution of galaxies using the Middle Ages Galaxy Properties with Integral field spectroscopy (MAGPI) survey. We use 2D resolved stellar kinematics to construct Jeans dynamical models for galaxies at mean redshift $z \sim 0.3$, corresponding to a lookback time of $3-4$ Gyr. The internal mass distribution for each galaxy is parameterised by the combined mass density slope $γ$ (baryons $+$ dark matter), which is the logarithmic change of density with radius. We use a MAGPI sample of 28 galaxies from low-to-mid density environments and compare to density slopes derived from galaxies in the high density Frontier Fields clusters in the redshift range $0.29 <z < 0.55$, corresponding to a lookback time of $\sim 5$ Gyr. We find a median density slope of $γ= -2.22 \pm 0.05$ for the MAGPI sample, which is significantly steeper than the Frontier Fields median slope ($γ= -2.01 \pm 0.04$), implying the cluster galaxies are less centrally concentrated in their mass distribution than MAGPI galaxies. We also compare to the distribution of density slopes from galaxies in Atlas3D at $z \sim 0$, because the sample probes a similar environmental range as MAGPI. The Atlas3D median total slope is $γ= -2.25 \pm 0.02$, consistent with the MAGPI median. Our results indicate environment plays a role in the internal mass distribution of galaxies, with no evolution of the slope in the last 3-4 Gyr. These results are in agreement with the predictions of cosmological simulations.

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arXiv2022

Star formation history and transition epoch of cluster galaxies based on the Horizon-AGN simulation

Cluster galaxies exhibit substantially lower star formation rates than field galaxies today, but it is conceivable that clusters were sites of more active star formation in the early universe. Herein, we present an interpretation of the star formation history (SFH) of group/cluster galaxies based on the large-scale cosmological hydrodynamic simulation, Horizon-AGN. We find that massive galaxies in general have small values of e-folding timescales of star formation decay (i.e., ``mass quenching'') regardless of their environment, whilst low-mass galaxies exhibit prominent environmental dependence. In massive host halos (i.e., clusters), the e-folding timescales of low-mass galaxies are further decreased if they reside in such halos for a longer period of time. This ``environmental quenching'' trend is consistent with the theoretical expectation from ram pressure stripping. Furthermore, we define a ``transition epoch'' as where cluster galaxies become less star-forming than field galaxies. The transition epoch of group/cluster galaxies varies according to their stellar and host cluster halo masses. Low-mass galaxies in massive clusters show the earliest transition epoch of $\sim 7.6$ Gyr ago in lookback time. However, it decreases to $\sim 5.2$ Gyr for massive galaxies in low-mass clusters. Based on our findings, we can describe cluster galaxy's SFH with regard to the cluster halo-to-stellar mass ratio.

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