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Z. G. Deng

Publications and source records attributed to Z. G. Deng.

17 recordsLinked to original sources

Proton radiography of magnetic field produced by ultra-intense laser irradiating capacity-coil target

Ultra-intense ultra-short laser is firstly used to irradiate the capacity-coil target to generate magnetic field. The spatial structure and temporal evolution of huge magnetic fields were studied with time-gated proton radiography method. A magnetic flux density of 40T was measured by comparing the proton deflection and particle track simulations. Although the laser pulse duration is only 30fs, the generated magnetic field can last for over 100 picoseconds. The energy conversion efficiency from laser to magnetic field can reach as high as ~20%. The results indicate that tens of tesla (T) magnetic field could be produced in many ultra intense laser facilities around the world, and higher magnetic field could be produced by picosecond lasers.

physics.plasm-ph

Major Dry-Mergers In Early-Type Brightest Cluster Galaxies

We search for ongoing major dry-mergers in a well selected sample of local Brightest Cluster Galaxies (BCGs) from the C4 cluster catalogue. 18 out of 515 early-type BCGs with redshift between 0.03 and 0.12 are found to be in major dry-mergers, which are selected as pairs (or triples) with $r$-band magnitude difference $\dm<1.5$ and projected separation $\rp<30$ kpc, and showing signatures of interaction in the form of significant asymmetry in residual images. We find that the fraction of BCGs in major dry-mergers increases with the richness of the clusters, consistent with the fact that richer clusters usually have more massive (or luminous) BCGs. We estimate that present-day early-type BCGs may have experienced on average $\sim 0.6 (\tmerge/0.3\Gyr)^{-1}$ major dry-mergers and through this process increases their luminosity (mass) by $15% (\tmerge/0.3\Gyr)^{-1} (\fmass/0.5)$ on average since $z=0.7$, where $\tmerge$ is the merging timescale and $\fmass$ is the mean mass fraction of companion galaxies added to the central ones. We also find that major dry-mergers do not seem to elevate radio activities in BCGs. Our study shows that major dry-mergers involving BCGs in clusters of galaxies are not rare in the local Universe, and they are an important channel for the formation and evolution of BCGs.

astro-ph.GA

Mid-Infrared Spectroscopic Properties of Ultra-Luminous Infrared Quasars

We analyse mid-infrared (MIR) spectroscopic properties for 19 ultra-luminous infrared quasars (IR QSOs) in the local universe based on the spectra from the Infrared Spectrograph on board the Spitzer Space Telescope. The MIR properties of IR QSOs are compared with those of optically-selected Palomar-Green QSOs (PG QSOs) and ultra-luminous infrared galaxies (ULIRGs). The average MIR spectral features from ~ 5 to 30um, including the spectral slopes, 6.2um PAH emission strengths and [NeII] 12.81um luminosities of IR QSOs, differ from those of PG QSOs. In contrast, IR QSOs and ULIRGs have comparable PAH and [NeII] luminosities. These results are consistent with IR QSOs being at a transitional stage from ULIRGs to classical QSOs. We also find that the colour index alpha(30, 15) is a good indicator of the relative contribution of starbursts to AGNs for all QSOs. Correlations between the [NeII] 12.81um and PAH 6.2um luminosities and those between the [NeII], PAH with 60um luminosities for ULIRGs and IR QSOs indicate that both [NeII] and PAH luminosities are approximate star formation rate indicators for IR QSOs and starburst-dominated galaxies; the scatters are, however, quite large (~ 0.7 to 0.8 dex). Finally the correlation between the EW(PAH 6.2um) and outflow velocities suggests that star formation activities are suppressed by feedback from AGNs and/or supernovae.

astro-ph

Photometric Properties and Scaling Relations of Early Type Brightest Cluster Galaxies

We investigate the photometric properties of the early type Brightest Cluster Galaxies (BCGs) using a carefully selected sample of 85 BCGs from the C4 cluster catalogue with redshift less than 0.1. We perform accurate background subtractions, and surface photometry for these BCGs to 25 $\magsec$ in the Sloan $r$-band. By quantitatively analysing the gradient of the Petrosian profiles of BCGs, we find that a large fraction of BCGs have extended stellar envelopes in their outskirts; more luminous BCGs tend to have more extended stellar halos that are likely connected with mergers. A comparison sample of elliptical galaxies was chosen with similar apparent magnitude and redshift ranges, for which the same photometric analysis procedure is applied. We find that BCGs have steeper size-luminosity ($R \propto L^α$) and Faber-Jackson ($L \propto σ^β$) relations than the bulk of early type galaxies. Furthermore, the power-law indices ($α$ and $β$) in these relations increase as the isophotal limits become deeper. For isophotal limits from 22 to 25 $\magsec$, BCGs are usually larger than the bulk of early type galaxies, and a large fraction ($\sim 49%$) of BCGs have disky isophotal shapes. The differences in the scaling relations are consistent with a scenario where the dynamical structure and formation route of BCGs may be different from the bulk of early type galaxies, in particular dry (dissipationless) mergers may play a more important role in their formation; we highlight several possible dry merger candidates in our sample.

astro-ph

The Growth of Black Holes and Their Host Spheroids in (Sub)mm-loud QSOs at High Redshift

We study the growth of black holes and stellar population in spheroids at high redshift using several (sub)mm-loud QSO samples. Applying the same criteria established in an earlier work, we find that, similar to IR QSOs at low redshift, the far-infrared emission of these (sub)mm-loud QSOs mainly originates from dust heated by starbursts. By combining low-z IR QSOs and high-z (sub)mm-loud QSOs, we find a trend that the star formation rate ($\Mstardot$) increases with the accretion rate ($\Mdot$). We compare the values of $\Mstardot/\Mdot$ for submm emitting galaxies (SMGs), far-infrared ultraluminous/hyperluminous QSOs and typical QSOs, and construct a likely evolution scenario for these objects. The (sub)mm-loud QSO transition phase has both high $\Mdot$ and $\Mstardot$ and hence is important for establishing the correlation between the masses of black holes and spheroids.

astro-ph

Isophotal Shapes of Elliptical/S0 Galaxies from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey

We revisit the shapes of isophotes for elliptical (E) and lenticular (S0) galaxies by studying 847 nearby early-type galaxies selected from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey Data Release 4 with velocity dispersions above 200 km/s. The IRAF task {\tt ellipse} was used to derive the deviations of the isophotes from pure ellipses (Fourier coefficients a_3/a and a_4/a), position angles and ellipticities as a function of radius. We show the statistical distributions of the a_3/a and a_4/a parameters as a function of velocity dispersion, magnitude, and colour. The a_4/a parameter is correlated with the ellipticity and absolute Petrosian magnitude of galaxies. No significant correlation was found between the a_4/a parameter with colour and velocity dispersion. A cross-correlation between the FIRST survey and the SDSS data reveals a lack of powerful radio emitters in discy E/S0s, as previously found by Bender et al. We also find that boxy E/S0s favor denser environments while discy E/S0s favor more isolated environments. The median values of changes in the ellipticity and position angle between one and one and a half Petrosian half-light radii in the isophotes are about -0.023 and 1.61 degree respectively. The average change in the position angle is much larger, about 4.12 degree, due to an extended tail. The change in ellipticity is weakly correlated with the ellipticity itself, with an increasing ellipticity for galaxies with higher ellipticity as the radius increases. The isophote parameters for the 847 galaxies are available online.

astro-ph

Luminous Infrared Galaxies in the Local Universe

We study the morphology and star formation properties of 159 local luminous infrared galaxy (LIRG) using multi-color images from Data Release 2 (DR2) of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). The LIRGs are selected from a cross-correlation analysis between the IRAS survey and SDSS. They are all brighter than 15.9 mag in the r-band and below redshift ~ 0.1, and so can be reliably classified morphologically. We find that the fractions of interacting/merging and spiral galaxies are ~ 48% and ~ 40% respectively. Our results complement and confirm the decline (increase) in the fraction of spiral (interacting/merging) galaxies from z ~1 to z ~ 0.1, as found by Melbourne, Koo & Le Floc'h (2005). About 75% of spiral galaxies in the local LIRGs are barred, indicating that bars may play an important role in triggering star formation rates > 20 M_{sun}/yr in the local universe. Compared with high redshift LIRGs, local LIRGs have lower specific star formation rates, smaller cold gas fractions and a narrower range of stellar masses. Local LIRGs appear to be either merging galaxies forming intermediate mass ellipticals or spiral galaxies undergoing high star formation activities regulated by bars.

astro-ph

The Physical Connections Among IR QSOs, PG QSOs and Narrow-Line Seyfert 1 Galaxies

We study the properties of infrared-selected QSOs (IR QSOs), optically-selected QSOs (PG QSOs) and Narrow Line Seyfert 1 galaxies (NLS1s). We compare their properties from the infrared to the optical and examine various correlations among the black hole mass, accretion rate, star formation rate and optical and infrared luminosities. We find that the infrared excess in IR QSOs is mostly in the far infrared, and their infrared spectral indices suggest that the excess emission is from low temperature dust heated by starbursts rather than AGNs. The infrared excess is therefore a useful criterion to separate the relative contributions of starbursts and AGNs. We further find a tight correlation between the star formation rate and the accretion rate of central AGNs for IR QSOs. The ratio of the star formation rate and the accretion rate is about several hundred for IR QSOs, but decreases with the central black hole mass. This shows that the tight correlation between the stellar mass and the central black hole mass is preserved in massive starbursts during violent mergers. We suggest that the higher Eddington ratios of NLS1s and IR QSOs imply that they are in the early stage of evolution toward classical Seyfert 1's and QSOs, respectively.

astro-ph

Chandra Observations of ULIRGs: Extended Hot Gas Halos in Merging Galaxies

We study the properties of hot gaseous halos in 10 nearby ultraluminous IRAS galaxies observed with the ACIS instrument on board Chandra. For all sample galaxies, diffuse soft X-ray emissions are found within ~10 kpc of the central region; their spectra are well fitted by a MEKAL model plus emission lines from alpha-elements and other ions. The temperature of the hot gas is about 0.7 keV and metallicity is about 1 solar. Outside the central region, extended hot gaseous halos are found for nine out of the ten ULIRGs. Most spectra of these extended halos can be fitted with a MEKAL model with a temperature of about 0.6 keV and a low metallicity (~ 0.1 solar). We discuss the implications of our results on the origin of X-ray halos in elliptical galaxies and the feedback processes associated with starbursts.

astro-ph

Formation of bulges in very late-type galaxies from SSCs

The dynamical evolution of super star clusters (SSCs) moving in the background of a dark matter halo has been investigated as a possible event responsible for the formation of bulges in late-type spirals. The underlying physical processes include sinking of SSCs due to the dynamical friction and stripping of SSCs on their way to the center. Our model calculations show that only sinking of circumnuclear SSCs contributes to the formation of galactic bulges at the early stage. Based on the assumption of a universal density profile for the dark matter halo, and an isothermal model for the SSCs, our simulations have yielded bulges that are similar in many aspects to the observational ones. In particular, the derived surface density profiles can be well fitted by anexponential structure with nuclear cusps, which is consistent with HST observations.

astro-ph

The nature of ultra-luminous X-ray sources in NGC4565

We report the optical identifications of two X-ray luminous point sources in the spiral galaxy NGC4565 based on archive data of Chandra and the Hubble Space Telescope. The central X-ray point source, RXJ1236.3+2559, is found to be the nucleus of NGC4565 with an X-ray luminosity of Lx= 4.3 10^{39} erg. We show that its multi-waveband properties are consistent with it being a low-luminosity active galactic nucleus. A faint optical counterpart with B=25.1 and I=24.0 was identified for the off-nucleus X-ray point source, RXJ1236.2+2558. Its extinction corrected B magnitude is estimated to be 24.5. The X-ray to optical flux ratio (fx/fB) is about 540. From the optical and X-ray properties we argue that RXJ1236.2+2558 is an ultra-luminous X-ray compact source with Lx=6.5 10^{39} erg. The source is probably located in a faint globular cluster at the outer edge of NGC4565's bulge.

astro-ph

Spectroscopic Properties of QSOs Selected from Ultraluminous Infrared Galaxy Samples

We performed spectroscopic observations for a large infrared QSO sample with a total of 25 objects. The sample was compiled from the QDOT redshift survey, the 1 Jy ULIRGs survey and a sample obtained by a cross-correlation study of the IRAS Point Source Catalogue with the ROSAT All Sky Survey Catalogue. Statistical analyses of the optical spectra show that the vast majority of infrared QSOs have narrow permitted emission lines (with FWHM of Hbeta less than 4000 km/s) and more than 60% of them are luminous narrow line Seyfert 1 galaxies. Two of the infrared QSOs are also classified as low ionization BAL QSOs. More than 70% of infrared QSOs are moderately or extremely strong Fe II emitters. This is the highest percentage of strong Fe II emitters in all subclasses of QSO/Seyfert 1 samples. We found that the Fe II to Hbeta, line ratio is significantly correlated with the [OIII]5007 peak and Hbeta blueshift. Soft X-ray weak infrared QSOs tend to have large blueshifts in permitted emission lines and significant Fe II48,49 (5100--5400 A) residuals relative to the Boroson & Green Fe II template. If the blueshifts in permitted lines are caused by outflows, then they appear to be common in infrared QSOs. As the infrared-selected QSO sample includes both luminous narrow line Seyfert 1 galaxies and low ionization BAL QSOs, it could be a useful laboratory to investigate the evolutionary connection among these objects.

astro-ph

Chandra Observations of MRK 273: Unveiling the Central AGN and the Extended Hot Gas Halo

We report X-ray observations of the field containing the ultraluminous IRAS galaxy Mrk~273 Using the ACIS-S3 instrument on board Chandra. The high resolution X-ray image, for the first time, reveals a compact hard X-ray nucleus in Mrk~273. Its X-ray energy distribution is well described by a heavily obscured power-law spectrum plus a narrow $\Feka$ emission line at 6.4 keV. The neutral hydrogen column density is about $4\times10^{23}\cm^{-2}$, implying an absorption -corrected X-ray luminosity (0.1--10 keV) for the nucleus of $\Lx\approx 6.5\times 10^{43} \ergs$. There are also bright soft X-ray clumps and diffuse soft X-ray emissions surrounding the central hard X-ray nucleus within the $10\arcsec$ of the nuclear region. Its spectrum can be fitted by a MEKAL thermal model with temperature of about 0.8 keV and high metallicity ($Z\sim 1.5Z_\odot$) plus emission lines from $α$ elements and ions. Further outside the central region, the Chandra observations reveal a very extended hot gas halo with a projected diameter of about $108 \kpc\times 68 \kpc$ and soft X-ray luminosity of $\Lx\approx 1.9\times 10^{41} \ergs$. The temperature of the hot gas is about 0.62 keV with a low metallicity ($Z \sim 0.1 Z_\odot$). We discuss the nature of the AGN in Mrk~273 and the implications of our results on the origin of X-ray halos in elliptical galaxies. We also discuss the properties of Mrk~273x, a background AGN in the Mrk~273 field. The AGN has an X-ray luminosity of $\Lx \approx 2.43\times 10^{44}\ergs$ in the 0.5-10 keV band. Its X-ray properties resemble those of Seyfert 1 galaxies while its optical properties are similar to Seyfert 2 galaxies. Such mixed classifications may be a challenge for the unification scheme of AGNs.

astro-ph

The Fundamental Plane of Spiral Galaxies: Search from Observational Data

The fundamental plane of spiral galaxies was searched from observational data, which can be approximately represented in observational parameters by $ L \propto V^2 R $, where $L$, $R$, and $V$ are the luminosity, the linear size of galactic disk, and the rotation velocity. This plane exists at all optical bands in our samples of more than 500 spiral galaxies in total. It is more fundamental than the relationship between any two of the parameters, and can reduce the residual of the Tully--Fisher $L$--$V$ relations by about 50\%. Noticed that the power index of $V$ is doubled from that of $R$, which implies that the total mass and the mass distribution of galaxies plays an important role in forming the fundamental plane. Involving the third parameter of galactic size has a strong physical implication on galaxy formation and the dark--mass distribution.

astro-ph

Relation between $M_{BH}$ and $M_{bulge}$: A simulation study

The dynamical evolution of super star clusters (SSCs) moving in the background of dark matter halo has been investigated as a possible event causing the observed correlation between the mass of galactic bulge, $M_{bulge}$, and the mass of its central black hole, $M_{BH}$. The involved physical processes are the sinking of SSCs due to the dynamical friction, and the stripping of SSCs on their way to the center. Model calculations show that only sinking of circumnuclear SSCs contribute to both the growth of the central object and the formation of the galactic bulge at the early stage. On the assumption of a universal density profile for the dark matter halo, and an isothermal model for the SSCs, our simulations have yielded the mass ratio of the central objects to the bulges formed this way to be about a few times $10^{-4}$, less than the observed median value for early type galaxies. It is, however, consistent with the observed mass ratio for disk spirals, implying that the proposed scenario might be a possible event for the formation of bulges and central black holes of late type galaxies and for $M_{BH} - M_{bulge}$ correlation of disk galaxies.

astro-ph

A statistical study of the spectra of very luminous IRAS galaxies. II.Spectral and environmental analysis

Spectroscopic observations of a sample of 73 very luminous IRAS galaxies (log(LIR/Lsun)>=11.5 for H0=50km s^{-1} Mpc^{-1},q0=0.5) from the 2Jy red- shift survey catalogue were carried out using the 2.16m telescope at the Beijing Astronomical Observatory. The observational data, including the optical images (extracted from Digital Sky Survey) and spectra for these galaxies, are presented in paper I (Wu et al., 1998). In this paper, we give the spectral and morphological classifications for these very luminous IRAS galaxies (VLIRGs). We show that about 60% of VLIRGs exhibit AGN-like spectra (Seyfert 1s, Seyfert 2s, LINER-like galaxies). This fraction goes up to 82% for the ultraluminous IRAS galaxies (ULIRGs) subsample (Log(LIR/ Lsun) >= 12.0). 56% of the VLIRGs show strong interaction or merging signa- tures; this fraction rises to 91% for the ULIRGs. These statistical results strongly suggest that interaction triggers nuclear activities and enhances the infrared luminosity. We find that LINER and a mixture type which have optical properties of both HII galaxies and LINERs could be at the transi- tion stage from infrared luminous HII galaxies to AGNs; their main energy production is from starbursts as well as AGNs. Both infrared luminosities and Ha equivalent widths increase dramatically as nuclear separations between VLIRGs and their nearest neighbors decrease. There is little doubt that strong starbursts happen in the nuclei of VLIRGs. Assuming class 0 as advanced merger, we construct a simple merger sequence, from morphological classes 1 to 4 (with near or far companions), to class 5 and 6 (interacting pairs and mergers) and then to class 0 (isolated galax- ies). Along this sequence, VLIRGs evolve from HII galaxies to AGNs.

astro-ph

A statistical study of the spectra of very luminous IRAS galaxies I: Data

This paper presents the results of spectral observations for the largest complete sample of very luminous IRAS galaxies obtained to date. The sample consists of those 73 objects for which log (L_IR/L_sun) => 11.5 (H0=50 km/s/Mpc, q0=0.5) and mag =< 15.5, and was extracted from the 2 Jy IRAS redshift catalog. All the spectra were obtained using 2.16m telescope of Beijing Astronomical Observatory during the years 1994-1996. A total of 123 galaxy spectra were obtained with spectral ranges of 4400A to 7100A and 3500A to 8100A at resolutions of 11.2A and 9.3A respectively. In addition to the 73 spectra for sample galaxies, we also present spectra for ten non-sample galaxies and a further 40 for the companions of sample galaxies. The data presented include nuclear spectrum and the parameters describing the emission lines, absorption lines and continua as well as DSS images and environmental parameters.

astro-ph