arXiv subjects

Shardha Jogee

Publications and source records attributed to Shardha Jogee.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Discovery of a Barred-Spiral Galaxy at $z_{spec}$ = 3.16 I: Bar Identification and Properties

The formation of stellar bars is an important milestone in the secular evolution of spiral galaxies, which typically indicates the presence of a massive rotationally supported disk. Determining when these structures first appeared in the early universe is crucial to constraining the timeline of galactic disk assembly. Here, we report the discovery of COSMOS-74706, a barred spiral galaxy at $z_{spec} = 3.159$. Imaging of COSMOS-74706 with JWST/NIRCam indicates a disk-like morphology and spiral structure with an elongated central feature aligned between the spiral arms, most conspicuously visible in the F200W, F277W, and F356W filters. Three independent methods all support the presence of a bar: visual inspection of residuals from Sérsic-profile fitting shows a linear structure, isophotal ellipse-fitting displays characteristic profiles of ellipticity and position angle consistent with a bar signature, and Fourier decomposition of the galaxy produces a central bisymmetric mode above a threshold strength calibrated to $z=1-3$ barred spirals. Leveraging archival Keck/MOSDEF spectroscopy overlapping with a blue clump on the edge of the galaxy, a robust redshift is inferred, with photometric constraints indicating that this structure lies at the same redshift as the main spiral. This spectroscopic evidence, placing an unlensed barred spiral at $z>3$ supports the idea that galaxies with rotationally supported disks and disk-halo properties that are conducive to bar formation were already in place within 2 Gyr after the Big Bang.

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arXiv2026

Discovery of a Barred-Spiral Galaxy at $z_{spec}$ = 3.16 II. The Star Formation History

We present a detailed analysis of a massive barred galaxy at $z_{spec}=3.1591$ using deep multi-band imaging from HST and JWST. For the first time, we resolve its morphology and stellar structures thanks to the JWST/NIRCam NIR and MIR photometry. The galaxy possesses two distinct components with significantly different colors. Through careful image decomposition and masking, we isolate and characterize the flux contribution from each component. The galaxy exhibits a clear spiral morphology, and in a separate companion paper, we present evidence suggesting the presence of a stellar bar. Based on spatially resolved spectral energy distribution modeling with Prospector, we derive the star formation history and other physical properties of the bar and the surrounding regions. The total stellar mass of the galaxy is constrained as $\log(M_*/M_{\odot}) = 10.63\pm0.13$. We find that the bar region contains around 30% of the total stellar mass, but only accounts for around 8% of the recent star formation rate. The region containing the potential bar shows a significantly older mass-weighted stellar age, supporting the inside-out scenario for galaxy formation, and providing tentative evidence for bar quenching in the early stage. The quick onset of a stellar bar at this redshift requires a low dark matter fraction, suggesting the baryon-dominated nature of high-$z$ massive galaxies, and offering rare insight into galaxy evolution at around two billion years after the Big Bang.

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arXiv2026

Exploring the Relationship Between Bars, Star Formation Activity, and Host Galaxy Properties from $\mathbf{z \sim 0}$ to $\mathbf{z \sim 2}$

We present the most comprehensive study to date of the relationship between bars, star formation, and galaxy properties from $z \sim$ 0 to $z \sim$ 2. We use a mass-complete sample of 1,171 galaxies from the JWST CEERS survey with $M_\star > 10^{10} M_\odot$ and repeat the analysis using COSMOS-Web data. Our results are: 1) At high redshift ($z \sim$ $1-2$) barred galaxies tend to have high sSFRs and low Sérsic indices ($n \leq 2$), while at low redshifts barred galaxies emerge with both low sSFR and higher $n$, suggestive of quiescent galaxies with bulges. 2) The fractional contribution of barred quiescent galaxies to the bar fraction rises steeply from $z \sim$ 2 to $z \sim$ 0, while that of barred actively star-forming galaxies falls. 3) The fraction of quiescent galaxies that are barred rises steeply over the last 10 Gyr. 4) Our empirical results show good agreement with the TNG50-1 simulations for bars with $a_{\mathrm{bar}}$ $>$ 1.5 kpc. Our results allow for the possibility that bar-driven secular evolution may lead to quiescence and/or that bars are more likely to persist and grow in gas-poor, quiescent galaxies. The steep rise in the quiescent bar fraction over 10 Gyr may represent an evolutionary sequence whereby gas-rich disks at high redshift first develop short, dynamically young bars and over time, repeated bar-driven gas inflows lead to central starbursts and declining gas fractions that strengthen the bar as the galaxy transitions toward quiescence.

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arXiv2026

A Rapid Evolution in the Observed Mbh/M* Relation at z > 3 Revealed via Spectro-photometric SED-Modeling

Spectroscopic observations from JWST have uncovered a plethora of active galactic nuclei (AGN) at z > 4 with black hole (BH) mass (Mbh) to stellar mass (M*) ratios significantly above the local relation when using standard virial mass scaling relations. However, M* estimates of AGN may be inaccurate due to limitations in spectral energy distribution (SED) fitting codes, exemplified by a lack of physically-motivated AGN line emission models. Here, we fit NIRSpec/PRISM spectra of 39 galaxies at z ~ 3.5-7 selected as broad-line AGN from the CEERS and RUBIES surveys. Applying kinematic decompositions from NIRSpec/G395M spectra, we fit their continuum and narrow-component line fluxes using the BEAGLE-AGN SED fitting tool. While limitations of BEAGLE-AGN make it difficult to model little red dots (LRDs), we find that M* estimates of non-LRDs are, surprisingly, only modestly impacted by the inclusion or not of AGN narrow-line region (NLR) and continuum emission model components. We further find that non-LRD AGN at z < 3.5 are consistent with the local Mbh/M* relation while those at z > 4.5 display elevated ratios. While we cannot rule out observational biases or systematic uncertainties as partial causes, this transition over just ~500 Myr is driven entirely by changes in M* rather than an evolving Mbh distribution. These findings are consistent with models in which rapid BH growth results in elevated Mbh/M* ratios at early times, with a swift late-time assembly of host galaxies returning sources to the local relation at z < 4.

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arXiv2025

Galaxy Zoo CEERS: Bar fractions up to z~4.0

We study the evolution of the bar fraction in disc galaxies between $0.5 < z < 4.0$ using multi-band coloured images from JWST CEERS. These images were classified by citizen scientists in a new phase of the Galaxy Zoo project called GZ CEERS. Citizen scientists were asked whether a strong or weak bar was visible in the host galaxy. After considering multiple corrections for observational biases, we find that the bar fraction decreases with redshift in our volume-limited sample (n = 398); from $25^{+6}_{-4}$% at $0.5 < z < 1.0$ to $3^{+6}_{-1}$% at $3.0 < z < 4.0$. However, we argue it is appropriate to interpret these fractions as lower limits. Disentangling real changes in the bar fraction from detection biases remains challenging. Nevertheless, we find a significant number of bars up to $z = 2.5$. This implies that discs are dynamically cool or baryon-dominated, enabling them to host bars. This also suggests that bar-driven secular evolution likely plays an important role at higher redshifts. When we distinguish between strong and weak bars, we find that the weak bar fraction decreases with increasing redshift. In contrast, the strong bar fraction is constant between $0.5 < z < 2.5$. This implies that the strong bars found in this work are robust long-lived structures, unless the rate of bar destruction is similar to the rate of bar formation. Finally, our results are consistent with disc instabilities being the dominant mode of bar formation at lower redshifts, while bar formation through interactions and mergers is more common at higher redshifts.

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arXiv2025

The Abundance and Properties of Barred Galaxies out to $z \sim$ 4 Using $\textit{JWST}$ CEERS Data

We present the first estimate of the observed fraction and properties of bars out to $ z\sim4$ using $\textit{JWST}$ CEERS NIRCam images. We analyze 1770 galaxies with $M_\star > 10^{10} M_\odot$ at $0.5 \leq z \leq 4$ and identify barred galaxies from 839 moderately inclined disk galaxies via ellipse fits and visual classification of both F200W and F444W images. Our results apply mainly to bars with projected semi-major axis $a_{\rm bar}$ $> 1.5 $ kpc ($\sim$ 2 $\times$ PSF in F200W images) that can be robustly traced by ellipse fits. For such bars, the observed bar fraction at $z\sim$ 2-4 is low ($\lesssim 10\%$), and they appear to be emerging at least as early as $z\sim 4$. Our observed bar fraction is consistent with the bar fraction predicted by TNG50 simulations for large bars with $a_{\rm bar}$ $> 1.5$ kpc at $z \sim$ 0.5-4 and with the bar fraction from Auriga simulations out to $z \sim$ 1.5. However, TNG50 simulations predict a large population of smaller bars that our data cannot robustly detect. If such bars exist, the true bar fraction at $z \sim$ 2-4 may be significantly higher than our results. At $z \ge 1.5$, many barred galaxies show nearby neighbors, suggesting bars may be tidally triggered. From $z \sim$ 4-0.5, the observed bar fraction, average projected bar length, and projected bar strength rise. Our results highlight the early emergence and evolution of barred galaxies and the rising importance of bar-driven secular evolution from $z \sim$4 to today.

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arXiv2024

Exploring Barred Galaxies in the Young Universe at $z\sim$2 Using $\textit{JWST}$ CEERS Data

Studying barred galaxies at early epochs can shed light on the early evolution of stellar bars, their impact on secular evolution and the star formation activity of young galaxies, and the origins of present-day barred galaxies like the Milky Way. We analyze data from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) Cosmic Evolution Early Release Science (CEERS) Survey to explore the impact of rest-frame wavelength and spatial resolution on detecting and characterizing some of the youngest barred galaxies known to date. We apply both visual classification and ellipse-fitting to JWST F115W, F200W, and F444W images of the barred galaxy CEERS-30155 at $z\sim$2.136, an epoch when the universe was only $\sim$22$\%$ of its current age. We find that the stellar bar in CEERS-30155 is not visible in the F115W image, which traces rest-frame ultraviolet (UV) light at $z\sim$2, a rest-frame wavelength highly obscured by dust. The stellar bar is visible in the F200W image, but is most prominent in the F444W image, likely due to the F444W image tracing rest-frame near-infrared (NIR) light at $z\sim$2. Rest-frame NIR light is not obscured by dust and traces low-mass, long-lived stars that dominate the stellar mass in galaxies. However, ellipse fits of the F444W image only robustly detect stellar bars whose semimajor axis are at least one PSF ($\sim$ 0.16" or $\sim$ 1.4 kpc at $z\sim$2). At $z\sim$2, stellar bars smaller than 1.5 kpc will be more robustly detected in the sharper F200W image (PSF $\sim$ 0.08" or $\sim$0.7 kpc at $z\sim$2), provided that the rest-frame optical light it traces is not overly impacted by dust and can still unveil the bar structure. Using a combination of both JWST F200W and F444W images can improve the detection of barred galaxies at $z\sim$2 to 4. At even higher redshifts (z > 4), the Giant Magellan Telescope will be a cornerstone facility to explore young barred galaxies.

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arXiv2023

The Impact of Far-Infrared/Sub-Millimeter Data on the Star Formation Rates of Massive Dusty Galaxies at Cosmic Noon

We explore how the star formation rate (SFR), stellar mass, and other properties of massive dusty galaxies at cosmic noon are impacted when far-infrared (FIR)/sub-millimeter data are added to datasets containing only ultraviolet (UV) to near-infrared (NIR) data. For a sample of 92 massive (stellar mass $> 4{\times}10^{10}$ M$_{\odot}$) dusty galaxies at $z\,{\sim}\,1.5$ to 3.0 (corresponding to ${\sim}25$% of cosmic history), we fit the spectral energy distributions (SEDs) based on DECam UV-to-optical data, VICS82, NEWFIRM, and Spitzer-IRAC NIR data, and Herschel-SPIRE FIR/sub-millimeter data using the Bayesian Analysis of Galaxies for Physical Inference and Parameter Estimation (BAGPIPES) SED-fitting code. We assume a delayed tau star formation history with a log$_{10}$ prior on tau and derive the posterior distributions of stellar mass, SFR, extinction, and specific SFR. We find that adding FIR/sub-millimeter data leads to SFR estimates that can be both significantly higher or lower (typically by up to a factor of 10) than estimates based on UV-to-NIR data alone, depending on the type of galaxies involved. We find that the changes in SFR scale with changes in extinction. These results highlight the importance of including FIR/sub-millimeter data in order to accurately derive the SFRs of massive dusty galaxies at $z\,{\sim}\,2$.

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arXiv2023

The Complete CEERS Early Universe Galaxy Sample: A Surprisingly Slow Evolution of the Space Density of Bright Galaxies at z ~ 8.5-14.5

We present a sample of 88 candidate z~8.5-14.5 galaxies selected from the completed NIRCam imaging from the Cosmic Evolution Early Release Science (CEERS) survey. These data cover ~90 arcmin^2 (10 NIRCam pointings) in six broad-band and one medium-band imaging filter. With this sample we confirm at higher confidence early JWST conclusions that bright galaxies in this epoch are more abundant than predicted by most theoretical models. We construct the rest-frame ultraviolet luminosity functions at z~9, 11 and 14, and show that the space density of bright (M_UV=-20) galaxies changes only modestly from z~14 to z~9, compared to a steeper increase from z~8 to z~4. While our candidates are photometrically selected, spectroscopic followup has now confirmed 13 of them, with only one significant interloper, implying that the fidelity of this sample is high. Successfully explaining the evidence for a flatter evolution in the number densities of UV-bright z>10 galaxies may thus require changes to the dominant physical processes regulating star formation. While our results indicate that significant variations of dust attenuation with redshift are unlikely to be the dominant factor at these high redshifts, they are consistent with predictions from models which naturally have enhanced star-formation efficiency and/or stochasticity. An evolving stellar initial mass function could also bring model predictions into better agreement with our results. Deep spectroscopic followup of a large sample of early galaxies can distinguish between these competing scenarios.

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arXiv2023

A Milky Way-like barred spiral galaxy at a redshift of 3

The majority of massive disk galaxies in the local Universe show a stellar barred structure in their central regions, including our Milky Way. Bars are supposed to develop in dynamically cold stellar disks at low redshift, as the strong gas turbulence typical of disk galaxies at high redshift suppresses or delays bar formation. Moreover, simulations predict bars to be almost absent beyond $z = 1.5$ in the progenitors of Milky Way-like galaxies. Here we report observations of ceers-2112, a barred spiral galaxy at redshift $z_{\rm phot} \sim 3$, which was already mature when the Universe was only 2 Gyr old. The stellar mass ($M_{\star} = 3.9 \times 10^9 M_{\odot}$) and barred morphology mean that ceers-2112 can be considered a progenitor of the Milky Way, in terms of both structure and mass-assembly history in the first 2 Gyr of the Universe, and was the closest in mass in the first 4 Gyr. We infer that baryons in galaxies could have already dominated over dark matter at $z \sim 3$, that high-redshift bars could form in approximately 400 Myr and that dynamically cold stellar disks could have been in place by redshift $z = 4-5$ (more than 12 Gyrs ago).

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arXiv2023

CEERS Key Paper I: An Early Look into the First 500 Myr of Galaxy Formation with JWST

We present an investigation into the first 500 Myr of galaxy evolution from the Cosmic Evolution Early Release Science (CEERS) survey. CEERS, one of 13 JWST ERS programs, targets galaxy formation from z~0.5 to z>10 using several imaging and spectroscopic modes. We make use of the first epoch of CEERS NIRCam imaging, spanning 35.5 sq. arcmin, to search for candidate galaxies at z>9. Following a detailed data reduction process implementing several custom steps to produce high-quality reduced images, we perform multi-band photometry across seven NIRCam broad and medium-band (and six Hubble broadband) filters focusing on robust colors and accurate total fluxes. We measure photometric redshifts and devise a robust set of selection criteria to identify a sample of 26 galaxy candidates at z~9-16. These objects are compact with a median half-light radius of ~0.5 kpc. We present an early estimate of the z~11 rest-frame ultraviolet (UV) luminosity function, finding that the number density of galaxies at M_UV ~ -20 appears to evolve very little from z~9 to z~11. We also find that the abundance (surface density [arcmin^-2]) of our candidates exceeds nearly all theoretical predictions. We explore potential implications, including that at z>10 star formation may be dominated by top-heavy initial mass functions, which would result in an increased ratio of UV light per unit halo mass, though a complete lack of dust attenuation and/or changing star-formation physics may also play a role. While spectroscopic confirmation of these sources is urgently required, our results suggest that the deeper views to come with JWST should yield prolific samples of ultra-high-redshift galaxies with which to further explore these conclusions.

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arXiv2023

Cosmic Evolution Early Release Science Survey (CEERS): Multi-classing Galactic Dwarf Stars in the deep JWST/NIRCam

Low mass (sub)stellar objects represent the low end of the initial mass function, the transition to free-floating planets and a prominent interloper population in the search for high-redshift galaxies. Without proper motions or spectroscopy, can one identify these objects photometrically? JWST/NIRCam has several advantages over HST/WFC3 NIR: more filters, a greater wavelength range, and greater spatial resolution. Here, we present a catalogue of (sub)stellar dwarfs identified in the Cosmic Evolution Early Release Science Survey (CEERS). We identify 518 stellar objects down to $m_F200W \sim 28$ using half-light radius, a full three magnitudes deeper than typical HST/WFC3 images. A kNN nearest neighbour algorithm identifies and types these sources, using four HST/WFC3 and four NIRCam filters, trained on SpeX spectra of nearby brown dwarfs. The kNN with four neighbors classifies well within two subtypes: e.g M2$\pm$2 or T4$\pm$2, achieving $\sim$95% precision and recall. More granular typing results in worse metrics. In CEERS, we find 9 M8$\pm$2, 2 L6$\pm$2, 1 T4$\pm$2, and 15 T8$\pm$2. We compare the observed long wavelength NIRCam colours -- not used in the kNN -- to those expected for brown dwarf atmospheric models. The NIRCam F356W-F444W and F410M-F444W colours are redder by a magnitude for the type assigned by the kNN, hinting at a wider variety of atmospheres for these objects. We find a 300-350pc scale-height for M6$\pm$2 dwarfs plus a second structural component and a 150-200pc scale-height for T6$\pm$2 type dwarfs, consistent with literature values.

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arXiv2023

A z=1.85 galaxy group in CEERS: evolved, dustless, massive intra-halo light and a brightest group galaxy in the making

We present CEERS JWST/NIRCam imaging of a massive galaxy group at z=1.85, to explore the early JWST view on massive group formation in the distant Universe. The group contains >16 members (including 6 spectros. confirmations) down to log10(Mstar/Msun)=8.5, including the brightest group galaxy (BGG) in the process of actively assembling at this redshift. The BGG is comprised of multiple merging components extending ~3.6" (30kpc) across the sky. The BGG contributes 69% of the group's total galactic stellar mass, with one of the merging components containing 76% of the total mass of the BGG and a SFR>1810Msun/yr. Most importantly, we detect intra-halo light (IHL) in several HST and JWST/NIRCam bands, allowing us to construct a state-of-the-art rest-frame UV-NIR Spectral Energy Distribution of the IHL for the first time at this high redshift. This allows stellar population characterisation of both the IHL and member galaxies, as well as the morphology distribution of group galaxies vs. their star-formation activity when coupled with Herschel data. We create a stacked image of the IHL, giving us a sensitivity to extended emission of 28.5 mag/arcsec2 at rest-frame 1um. We find that the IHL is extremely dust poor (Av~0), containing an evolved stellar population of log10(t50/yr)=8.8, corresponding to a formation epoch for 50% of the stellar material 0.63Gyr before z=1.85. There is no evidence of ongoing star-formation in the IHL. The IHL in this group at z=1.85 contributes ~10% of the total stellar mass, comparable with what is observed in local clusters. This suggests that the evolution of the IHL fraction is more self-similar with redshift than predicted by some models, challenging our understanding of IHL formation during the assembly of high-redshift clusters. JWST is unveiling a new side of group formation at this redshift, which will evolve into Virgo-like structures in the local Universe.

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arXiv2023

ALMA 1.1mm Observations of a Conservative Sample of High Redshift Massive Quiescent Galaxies in SHELA

We present a sample of 30 massive (log$(M_{\ast}/M_\odot) >11$) $z=3-5$ quiescent galaxies selected from the \textit{Spitzer-}HETDEX Exploratory Large Area (SHELA) Survey and observed at 1.1mm with Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) Band 6 observations. These ALMA observations would detect even modest levels of dust-obscured star-formation, on order of $\sim 20 \ M_\odot \textrm{yr}^{-1}$ at $z\sim4$ at a $1σ$ level, allowing us to quantify the amount of contamination from dusty star-forming sources in our quiescent sample. Starting with a parent sample of candidate massive quiescent galaxies from the Stevans et al. 2021 v1 SHELA catalog, we use the Bayesian \textsc{Bagpipes} spectral energy distribution fitting code to derive robust stellar masses ($M_*$) and star-formation rates (SFRs) for these sources, and select a conservative sample of 36 candidate massive ($M_* > 10^{11}M_\odot$) quiescent galaxies, with specific SFRs at $>2σ$ below the star-forming main sequence at $z\sim4$. Based on ALMA imaging, six of these candidate quiescent galaxies have the presence of significant dust-obscured star-formation, thus were removed from our final sample. This implies a $\sim 17\%$ contamination rate from dusty star-forming galaxies with our selection criteria using the v1 SHELA catalog. This conservatively-selected quiescent galaxy sample at $z=3-5$ will provide excellent targets for future observations to better constrain how massive galaxies can both grow and shut-down their star-formation in a relatively short time period.

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arXiv2023

CEERS Key Paper V: A triality on the nature of HST-dark galaxies

The new capabilities that JWST offers in the near- and mid-infrared (IR) are used to investigate in unprecedented detail the nature of optical/near-IR faint, mid-IR bright sources, HST-dark galaxies among them. We gather JWST data from the CEERS survey in the EGS, jointly with HST data, and analyze spatially resolved optical-to-mid-IR spectral energy distributions (SEDs) to estimate both photometric redshifts in 2 dimensions and stellar populations properties in a pixel-by-pixel basis. We select 138 galaxies with F150W-F356W>1.5 mag, F356W<27.5 mag. The nature of these sources is threefold: (1) 71% are dusty star-forming galaxies at 2 100 Gyr^-1); (2) 18% are quiescent/dormant (i.e., subject to reignition and rejuvenation) galaxies at 3<z<5, masses log M/M_sun~10 and post-starburst stellar mass-weighted ages (0.5-1 Gyr); and (3) 11% are strong young starbursts with indications of high-EW emission lines (typically, [OIII]+Hbeta) at 6<z<7 and log M/M_sun~9.5. The sample is dominated by disk-like galaxies with a remarkable compactness for XELG-z6 (effective radii smaller than 0.4 kpc). Large attenuations in SFGs, 2<A(V)<5 mag, are found within 1.5 times the effective radius, approximately 2 kpc, while QGs present A(V)~0.2 mag. Our SED-fitting technique reproduces the expected dust emission luminosities of IR-bright and sub-millimeter galaxies. This study implies high levels of star formation activity between z~20 and z~10, where virtually 100% of our galaxies had already formed 10^8 M_sun of their stellar content, 60% of them had assembled 10^9 M_sun, and 10% up to 10^10 M_sun (in situ or ex situ). (abridged)

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arXiv2023

CEERS: Spatially Resolved UV and mid-IR Star Formation in Galaxies at 0.2 < z < 2.5: The Picture from the Hubble and James Webb Space Telescopes

We present the mid-IR (MIR) morphologies for 64 star-forming galaxies at $0.2 10^{9}~M_\odot}$ using JWST MIRI observations from the Cosmic Evolution Early Release Science survey (CEERS). The MIRI bands span the MIR (7.7--21~$μ$m), enabling us to measure the effective radii ($R_{\rm{eff}}$) and Sérsic indexes of these SFGs at rest-frame 6.2 and 7.7 $μ$m, which contains strong emission from Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) features, a well-established tracer of star formation in galaxies. We define a ``PAH-band'' as the MIRI bandpass that contains these features at the redshift of the galaxy. We then compare the galaxy morphologies in the PAH-bands to those in rest-frame Near-UV (NUV) using HST ACS/F435W or ACS/F606W and optical/near-IR using HST WFC3/F160W imaging from UVCANDELS and CANDELS, where the NUV-band and F160W trace the profile of (unobscured) massive stars and the stellar continuum, respectively. The $R_{\rm{eff}}$ of galaxies in the PAH-band are slightly smaller ($\sim$10\%) than those in F160W for galaxies with $\rm{M_*\gtrsim10^{9.5}~M_\odot}$ at $z\leq1.2$, but the PAH-band and F160W have a similar fractions of light within 1 kpc. In contrast, the $R_{\rm{eff}}$ of galaxies in the NUV-band are larger, with lower fractions of light within 1 kpc compared to F160W for galaxies at $z\leq1.2$. Using the MIRI data to estimate the $\rm{SFR_{\rm{IR}}}$ surface density, we find the correlation between the $\rm{SFR_{\rm{IR}}}$ surface density and stellar mass has a steeper slope than that of the $\rm{SFR_{\rm{UV}}}$ surface density and stellar mass, suggesting more massive galaxies having increasing amounts of obscured fraction of star formation in their inner regions. This paper demonstrates how the high-angular resolution data from JWST/MIRI can reveal new information about the morphology of obscured-star formation.

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arXiv2023

The Stellar Mass - Black Hole Mass Relation at $z\sim2$ Down to $\mathcal{M}_\mathrm{BH}\sim10^7 M_\odot$ Determined by HETDEX

We investigate the stellar mass - black hole mass ($\mathcal{M}_*-\mathcal{M}_\mathrm{BH}$) relation with type 1 AGN down to $\mathcal{M}_\mathrm{BH}=10^7 M_\odot$, corresponding to a $\simeq -21$ absolute magnitude in rest-frame ultraviolet (UV), at $z = 2-2.5$. Exploiting the deep and large-area spectroscopic survey of the Hobby-Eberly Telescope Dark Energy Experiment (HETDEX), we identify 66 type 1 AGN with $\mathcal{M}_\mathrm{BH}$ ranging from $10^7$ to $10^{10} M_\odot$ that are measured with single-epoch virial method using C{\sc iv} emission lines detected in the HETDEX spectra. $\mathcal{M}_*$ of the host galaxies are estimated from optical to near-infrared photometric data taken with Spitzer, WISE, and ground-based 4-8m class telescopes by CIGALE SED fitting. We further assess the validity of SED fitting in two cases by host-nuclear decomposition performed through surface brightness profile fitting on spatially-resolved host galaxies with JWST/NIRCam CEERS data. We obtain the $\mathcal{M}_*-\mathcal{M}_\mathrm{BH}$ relation covering the unexplored low-mass ranges of $\mathcal{M}_\mathrm{BH}~\sim~10^7-10^8~M_\odot$, and conduct forward modelling to fully account for the selection biases and observational uncertainties. The intrinsic $\mathcal{M}_*-\mathcal{M}_\mathrm{BH}$ relation at $z\sim 2$ has a moderate positive offset of $0.52\pm0.14$~dex from the local relation, suggestive of more efficient black hole growth at higher redshift even in the low-mass regime of $\mathcal{M}_\mathrm{BH}~\sim~10^7-10^8~M_\odot$. Our $\mathcal{M}_*-\mathcal{M}_\mathrm{BH}$ relation is inconsistent with the $\mathcal{M}_\mathrm{BH}$ suppression at the low-$\mathcal{M}_*$ regime predicted by recent hydrodynamic simulations at a $98\%$ confidence level, suggesting that feedback in the low-mass systems may be weaker than those produced in hydrodynamic simulations.

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arXiv2023

Dusty Starbursts Masquerading as Ultra-high Redshift Galaxies in JWST CEERS Observations

Lyman Break Galaxy (LBG) candidates at z>10 are rapidly being identified in JWST/NIRCam observations. Due to the (redshifted) break produced by neutral hydrogen absorption of rest-frame UV photons, these sources are expected to drop out in the bluer filters while being well detected in redder filters. However, here we show that dust-enshrouded star-forming galaxies at lower redshifts (z<7) may also mimic the near-infrared (near-IR) colors of z>10 LBGs, representing potential contaminants in LBG candidate samples. First, we analyze CEERS-DSFG-1, a NIRCam dropout undetected in the F115W and F150W filters but detected at longer wavelengths. Combining the JWST data with (sub)millimeter constraints, including deep NOEMA interferometric observations, we show that this source is a dusty star-forming galaxy (DSFG) at z~5.1. We also present a tentative 2.6sigma SCUBA-2 detection at 850um around a recently identified z~16 LBG candidate in the same field and show that, if the emission is real and associated with this candidate, the available photometry is consistent with a z~5 dusty galaxy with strong nebular emission lines despite its blue near-IR colors. Further observations on this candidate are imperative to mitigate the low confidence of this tentative submillimeter emission and its positional uncertainty. Our analysis shows that robust (sub)millimeter detections of NIRCam dropout galaxies likely imply z=4-6 redshift solutions, where the observed near-IR break would be the result of a strong rest-frame optical Balmer break combined with high dust attenuation and strong nebular line emission, rather than the rest-frame UV Lyman break. This provides evidence that DSFGs may contaminate searches for ultra high-redshift LBG candidates from JWST observations.

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