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Zheng Cai

Publications and source records attributed to Zheng Cai.

At least 181 records · Page 10Linked to original sources
arXiv2019

Discovery of intergalactic bridges connecting two faint $z\sim3$ quasars

We use MUSE/VLT to conduct a survey of $z\sim3$ physical quasar pairs at close separation with a fast observation strategy. Our aim is twofold: (i) explore the Ly$α$ glow around the faint-end of the quasar population; (ii) take advantage of the combined illumination of a quasar pair to unveil large-scale intergalactic structures extending between the two quasars. Here, we report the results for a quasar pair ($z=3.020,3.008$; $i=21.84,22.15$), separated by 11.6 arcsec (or 89 projected kpc). MUSE reveals filamentary Ly$α$ structures extending between the two quasars with an average surface brightness of SB$_{\rm Lyα}=1.8\times10^{-18}$ erg s$^{-1}$ cm$^{-2}$ arcsec$^{-2}$. Photoionization models of the constraints in the Ly$α$, HeII, and CIV line emissions show that the emitting structures are intergalactic bridges with an extent between $\sim89$ and up to $\sim600$ kpc. Our models rule out the possibility that the structure extends for $\sim 2.9$ Mpc, i.e., the separation inferred from the uncertain systemic redshift difference of the quasars if the difference was only due to the Hubble flow. At the current spatial resolution and surface brightness limit, the average projected width of an individual bridge is about 35 kpc. We also detect a strong absorption in HI, NV, and CIV along the background sight-line at higher $z$, which we interpret as due to at least two components of cool, metal enriched, and relatively ionized CGM or IGM surrounding the quasar pair. Two additional HI absorbers are detected along both quasar sight-lines at $\sim -900$ and $-2800$ km s$^{-1}$ from the system, with the latter having associated CIV absorption only along the foreground quasar sight-line. The absence of galaxies in the MUSE field of view at the redshifts of these two absorbers suggests that they trace large-scale structures or expanding shells in front of the quasar pair.

astro-ph.GA↗
arXiv2019

Towards Near-imperceptible Steganographic Text

We show that the imperceptibility of several existing linguistic steganographic systems (Fang et al., 2017; Yang et al., 2018) relies on implicit assumptions on statistical behaviors of fluent text. We formally analyze them and empirically evaluate these assumptions. Furthermore, based on these observations, we propose an encoding algorithm called patient-Huffman with improved near-imperceptible guarantees.

cs.CL↗
arXiv2019

The Radio Universe at Low Surface Brightness: Feedback & accretion in the circumgalactic medium

Massive galaxies at high-z are known to co-evolve with their circumgalactic medium (CGM). If we want to truly understand the role of the CGM in the early evolution of galaxies and galaxy-clusters, we need to fully explore the multi-phase nature of the CGM. We present two novel science cases that utilize low-surface-brightness observations in the radio regime to better understand the CGM around distant galaxies. At the lowest temperatures, observations of widespread molecular gas are providing evidence for the cold baryon cycle that grows massive galaxies. At the highest temperatures, observations of the Sunyaev-Zeldovich Effect are starting to reveal the effect of quasar feedback onto the hot gas in the CGM. We discuss the critical role that radio interferometers with compact configurations in the millimeter regime will play over the next decade in understanding the crucial role of the multi-phase CGM in galaxy evolution.

astro-ph.GA↗
arXiv2019

Initial results from a systematic search for changing-look active galactic nuclei selected via mid-infrared variability

Changing look active-galatic-nuclei (CL AGNs) can yield considerable insight into accretion physics as well as the co-evolution of black holes and their host galaxies. A large sample of these CL AGNs is essential to achieve the latter goal. We propose an effective method to select CL candidates from spectroscopic quasar catalogs using the mid-infrared (MIR) variability information derived from ALL-WISE/NEOWISE data releases. Our primary selection criteria include both a large amplitude flux variation and a transition of MIR color from an AGN to a normal galaxy. A pilot spectroscopic follow-up of 7 candidates among about 300 candidates selected from Sloan Digital Sky Survey low-redshift (z<0.5) AGN sample results in 6 new turn-off CL AGNs. We expect to obtain hundreds of CL AGNs once full spectroscopic follow-up of the sample is carried out.

astro-ph.GA↗
arXiv2019

Inflation and Dark Energy from spectroscopy at $z > 2$

The expansion of the Universe is understood to have accelerated during two epochs: in its very first moments during a period of Inflation and much more recently, at $z < 1$, when Dark Energy is hypothesized to drive cosmic acceleration. The undiscovered mechanisms behind these two epochs represent some of the most important open problems in fundamental physics. The large cosmological volume at $2 < z < 5$, together with the ability to efficiently target high-$z$ galaxies with known techniques, enables large gains in the study of Inflation and Dark Energy. A future spectroscopic survey can test the Gaussianity of the initial conditions up to a factor of ~50 better than our current bounds, crossing the crucial theoretical threshold of $σ(f_{NL}^{\rm local})$ of order unity that separates single field and multi-field models. Simultaneously, it can measure the fraction of Dark Energy at the percent level up to $z = 5$, thus serving as an unprecedented test of the standard model and opening up a tremendous discovery space.

astro-ph.CO↗
arXiv2019

Ultraviolet Perspectives on Diffuse Gas in the Largest Cosmic Structures

The past decade has seen an explosion of discoveries and new insights into the diffuse gas within galaxies, galaxy clusters, and the filaments composing the Cosmic Web. A new decade will bring fresh opportunities to further this progress towards developing a comprehensive view of the composition, thermal state, and physical processes of diffuse gas in the Universe. Ultraviolet (UV) spectroscopy, probing diffuse 10^4-10^6 K gas at high spectral resolution, is uniquely poised to (1) witness environmental galaxy quenching processes in action, such as strangulation and tidal- and ram-pressure stripping, (2) directly account for the baryon content of galaxy clusters in the cold-warm (T<10^6 K) gas, (3) determine the phase structure and kinematics of gas participating in the equilibrium-regulating exchange of energy at the cores of galaxy clusters, and (4) map cold streams and filaments of the Cosmic Web that feed galaxies and clusters. With a substantial UV undertaking beyond the Hubble Space Telescope, all of the above would be achievable over the entire epoch of galaxy cluster formation. Such capabilities, coupled with already-planned advancements at other wavelengths, will transform extragalactic astronomy by revealing the dominant formation and growth mechanisms of gaseous halos over the mass spectrum, settling the debate between early- and late-time metal enrichment scenarios, and revealing how the ecosystems in which galaxies reside ultimately facilitate their demise.

astro-ph.GA↗
arXiv2019

Discovery of a Lya emitting dark-cloud within z ~ 2.8 SMMJ02399-0136 system

We present Keck/KCWI integral field spectrograph observations of the complex system surrounding SMM J02399$-$0136 (a lensed $z=2.8$ sub-mm galaxy), including an associated Ly$\rm α$ nebula, a dust-obscured, broad-absorption-line quasar, and neighboring galaxies. At a 3$σ$ surface brightness contour of 1.6$\times$ 10$^{-17}$ erg s$^{-1}$ cm$^{-2}$ arcsec$^{-2}$, the Ly$\rm α$ nebula extends over 17 arcsec ($\gtrsim 140$ physical kpc) and has a total Ly$\rm α$ luminosity of $2.5 \times 10^{44} \, \rm erg \, s^{-1}$ (uncorrected for lensing). The nebula exhibits a kinematic shear of $\sim$ 1000 km s$^{-1}$ over 100 pkpc with lowest velocities east of SMM J02399$-$0136 and increasing to the southwest. We also discover a bright, Ly$\rm α$ emitter, separated spatially and kinematically from the nebula, at a projected separation of $\approx$60 kpc from the quasar. This source has no clear central counterpart in deep $Hubble \, Space \, Telescope$ imaging, giving an intrinsic Ly$\rm α$ rest-frame equivalent width greater than 312 $ \rm \mathring{A}$ (5-$σ$). We argue that this 'dark cloud' is illuminated by the quasar with a UV flux that is orders of magnitude brighter than the emission along our sightline. This result confirms statistical inferences that luminous quasars at $z>2$ emit UV radiation anisotropically. Future KCWI observations of other lines, e.g. Ly$\rm β$, He$\rm _{II}$, C$\rm _{IV}$, etc, and with polarimetry will further reveal the origin of the Ly$\rm α$ nebula and nature of the dark cloud.

astro-ph.GA↗
arXiv2018

Overdensity of submillimeter galaxies around the $z\simeq 2.3$ MAMMOTH-1 nebula

In the hierarchical model of structure formation, giant elliptical galaxies form through merging processes within the highest density peaks known as protoclusters. While high-redshift radio galaxies usually pinpoint the location of these environments, we have recently discovered at z~2-3 three Enormous (>200 kpc) Lyman-Alpha Nebulae (ELANe) that host multiple AGN and that are surrounded by overdensities of Lyman-alpha Emitters (LAE). These regions are prime candidates of massive protoclusters in the early stages of assembly. To characterize the star-forming activity within these rare structures - both on ELAN and protocluster scales - we have initiated an observational campaign with the JCMT and the APEX telescopes. In this paper we report on sensitive SCUBA-2/JCMT 850 and 450 $μ$m observations of a 128 arcmin$^2$ field comprising the ELAN MAMMOTH-1, together with the peak of the hosting BOSS1441 LAE overdensity at z=2.32. These observations unveil $4.0\pm1.3$ times higher source counts at 850 $μ$m with respect to blank fields, likely confirming the presence of an overdensity also in obscured tracers. We find a strong detection at 850 $μ$m associated with the continuum source embedded within the ELAN MAMMOTH-1, which - together with the available data from the literature - allow us to constrain the spectral energy distribution of this source to be of an ULIRG with a far-infrared luminosity of $L_{\rm FIR}^{\rm SF}=2.4^{+7.4}_{-2.1}\times10^{12}$ L$_{\odot}$, and hosting an obscured AGN. Such a source is thus able to power the hard photoionization plus outflow scenario depicted in Cai et al. (2017b) to explain the extended Lyman-alpha, HeII$\lambda1640$ and CIV$\lambda1549$ emission, and their kinematics. In addition, the two brightest detections at 850 $μ$m ($f_{850}>18$ mJy) sit at the density peak of the LAEs overdensity, likely pinpointing the core of the protocluster.

astro-ph.GA↗
arXiv2018

MAHALO Deep Cluster Survey II. Characterizing massive forming galaxies in the Spiderweb protocluster at z=2.2

This paper is the second in a series presenting the results of our deep H$α$-line survey towards protoclusters at $z>2$, based on narrow-band imaging with the Subaru Telescope. This work investigates massive galaxies in a protocluster region associated with a radio galaxy (PKS 1138$-$262), the Spiderweb galaxy, at $z=2.2$. Our 0.5 mag deeper narrow-band imaging than previous surveys collects a total of 68 H$α$ emitters (HAE). 17 out of the 68 are newly discovered protocluster members. First, a very high characteristic stellar mass of M$_\star^\ast=10^{11.73}$ M$_\odot$ is measured from a Schechter function fit to the mass distribution of HAEs. Together with the Chandra X-ray data, we find that four out of six massive HAEs (M$_\star>10^{11}$ M$_\odot$) show bright X-ray emission, suggesting that they host active galactic nuclei (AGNs). Their mass estimates, therefore, would be affected by the nuclear emission from AGNs. Notably, the X-ray detected HAEs are likely positioned near the boundary between star-forming and quiescent populations in the rest-frame $UVJ$ plane. Moreover, our deep narrow-band data succeed in probing the bright H$α$ (+[Nii]) line nebula of the Spiderweb galaxy extending over $\sim100$ physical kpc. These results suggest that the massive galaxies in the Spiderweb protocluster are on the way to becoming the bright red sequence objects seen in local galaxy clusters, where AGNs might play an essential role in their quenching processes. Though a more statistical database is needed to build a general picture.

astro-ph.GA↗
arXiv2018

The First Data Release of the Beijing-Arizona Sky Survey

The Beijing-Arizona Sky Survey (BASS) is a new wide-field legacy imaging survey in the northern Galactic cap using the 2.3m Bok telescope. The survey will cover about 5400 deg$^2$ in the $g$ and $r$ bands, and the expected 5$σ$ depths (corrected for the Galactic extinction) in the two bands are 24.0 and 23.4 mag, respectively. BASS started observations in January 2015, and has completed about 41% of the whole area as of July 2016. The first data release contains both calibrated images and photometric catalogs obtained in 2015 and 2016. The depths of single-epoch images in the two bands are 23.4 and 22.9 mag, and the full depths of three epochs are about 24.1 and 23.5 mag, respectively.

astro-ph.GA↗
arXiv2018

Direct evidence of AGN-feedback: a post starburst galaxy stripped of its gas by AGN-driven winds

Post starburst E+A galaxies show indications of a powerful starburst that was quenched abruptly. Their disturbed, bulge-dominated morphologies suggest that they are merger remnants. The more massive E+A galaxies are suggested to be quenched by AGN feedback, yet little is known about AGN-driven winds in this short-lived phase. We present spatially-resolved IFU spectroscopy by the Keck Cosmic Web Imager of SDSS J003443.68+251020.9, at z=0.118. The system consists of two galaxies, the larger of which is a post starburst E+A galaxy hosting an AGN. Our modelling suggests a 400 Myrs starburst, with a peak star formation rate of 120 Msun/yr. The observations reveal stationary and outflowing gas, photoionized by the central AGN. We detect gas outflows to a distance of 17 kpc from the central galaxy, far beyond the region of the stars (about 3 kpc), inside a conic structure with an opening angle of 70 degrees. We construct self-consistent photoionization and dynamical models for the different gas components and show that the gas outside the galaxy forms a continuous flow, with a mass outflow rate of about 24 Msun/yr. The gas mass in the flow, roughly $10^9$ Msun, is larger than the total gas mass within the galaxy, some of which is outflowing too. The continuity of the flow puts a lower limit of 60 Myrs on the duration of the AGN feedback. Such AGN are capable of removing, in a single episode, most of the gas from their host galaxies and expelling enriched material into the surrounding CGM.

astro-ph.GA↗
arXiv2018

Keck/Palomar Cosmic Web Imagers (KCWI/PCWI) Reveal an Enormous Ly$α$ Nebula in an Extremely Overdense QSO Pair Field at $z=2.45$

Enormous Ly$α$ nebulae (ELANe) represent the extrema of Ly$α$ nebulosities. They have detected extents of $>200$ kpc in Ly$α$ and Ly$α$ luminosities $>10^{44}$ erg s$^{-1}$. The ELAN population is an ideal laboratory to study the interactions between galaxies and the intergalactic/circumgalactic medium (IGM/CGM) given their brightness and sizes. The current sample size of ELANe is still very small, and the few $z\approx2$ ELANe discovered to date are all associated with local overdensities of active galactic nuclei (AGNs). Inspired by these results, we have initiated a survey of ELANe associated with QSO pairs using the Palomar and Keck Cosmic Web Imagers (PCWI/KCWI). In this letter, we present our first result: the discovery of ELAN0101+0201 associated with a QSO pair at $z=2.45$. Our PCWI discovery data shows that, above a 2-$σ$ surface brightness of $1.2\times10^{-17}$ \sbunit, the end-to-end size of ELAN0101+0201 is $\gtrsim 232$ kpc. We have conducted follow-up observations using KCWI, resolving multiple Ly$α$ emitting sources within the rectangular field-of-view of $\approx 130\times165$ projected kpc$^2$, and obtaining their emission line profiles at high signal-to-noise ratios. Combining both KCWI and PCWI, our observations confirm that ELAN0101+0201 resides in an extremely overdense environment. Our observations further support that a large amount of cool ($T\sim10^4$K) gas could exist in massive halos (M$\gtrsim10^{13}$M$_\odot$) at $z\approx2$. Future observations on a larger sample of similar systems will provide statistics of how cool gas is distributed in massive overdensities at high-redshift and strongly constrain the evolution of the intracluster medium (ICM).

astro-ph.GA↗
arXiv2017

Gaia17biu/SN 2017egm in NGC 3191: The closest hydrogen-poor superluminous supernova to date is in a "normal", massive, metal-rich spiral galaxy

Hydrogen-poor superluminous supernovae (SLSNe-I) have been predominantly found in low-metallicity, star-forming dwarf galaxies. Here we identify Gaia17biu/SN 2017egm as an SLSN-I occurring in a "normal" spiral galaxy (NGC 3191) in terms of stellar mass (several times 10^10 M_sun) and metallicity (roughly Solar). At redshift z=0.031, Gaia17biu is also the lowest redshift SLSN-I to date, and the absence of a larger population of SLSNe-I in dwarf galaxies of similar redshift suggests that metallicity is likely less important to the production of SLSNe-I than previously believed. With the smallest distance and highest apparent brightness for an SLSN-I, we are able to study Gaia17biu in unprecedented detail. Its pre-peak near-ultraviolet to optical color is similar to that of Gaia16apd and among the bluest observed for an SLSN-I while its peak luminosity (M_g = -21 mag) is substantially lower than Gaia16apd. Thanks to the high signal-to-noise ratios of our spectra, we identify several new spectroscopic features that may help to probe the properties of these enigmatic explosions. We detect polarization at the ~0.5% level that is not strongly dependent on wavelength, suggesting a modest, global departure from spherical symmetry. In addition, we put the tightest upper limit yet on the radio luminosity of an SLSN-I with <5.4x10^26 erg/s/Hz (at 10 GHz), which is almost a factor of 40 better than previous upper limits and one of the few measured at an early stage in the evolution of an SLSN-I. This limit largely rules out an association of this SLSNe-I with known populations of gamma-ray burst (GRB) like central engines.

astro-ph.HE↗
arXiv2017

The Faint End of the z=5 Quasar Luminosity Function from the CFHTLS

We presents results from a spectroscopic survey of $z\sim5$ quasars in the CFHT Legacy Survey (CFHTLS). Using both optical color selection and a likelihood method we select 97 candidates over an area of 105 deg$^2$ to a limit of $i_{\rm AB} < 23.2$, and 7 candidates in the range $23.2 < i_{\rm AB} < 23.7$ over an area of 18.5 deg$^2$. Spectroscopic observations for 43 candidates were obtained with Gemini, MMT, and LBT, of which 37 are $z>4$ quasars. This sample extends measurements of the quasar luminosity function $\sim$1.5 mag fainter than our previous work in SDSS Stripe 82. The resulting luminosity function is in good agreement with our previous results, and suggests that the faint end slope is not steep. We perform a detailed examination of our survey completeness, particularly the impact of the Ly$α$ emission assumed in our quasar spectral models, and find hints that the observed Ly$α$ emission from faint $z\sim5$ quasars is weaker than for $z\sim3$ quasars at a similar luminosity. Our results strongly disfavor a significant contribution of faint quasars to the hydrogen-ionizing background at $z=5$.

astro-ph.GA↗
arXiv2017

MAHALO Deep Cluster Survey I. Accelerated and enhanced galaxy formation in the densest regions of a protocluster at z=2.5

We carried out deep H$α$ narrowband imaging with 10 hours net integrations towards the young protocluster, USS1558$-$003 at $z=2.53$ with the Subaru Telescope. This system is composed of four dense groups with massive local overdensities, traced by 107 H$α$ emitters (HAEs) with stellar masses and dust-corrected star formation rates down to $1\times10^8$ M$_\odot$ and 3 M$_\odot$yr$^{-1}$, respectively. We have investigated the environmental dependence of various physical properties within the protocluster by comparing distributions of HAEs in higher and lower densities with a standard Kolmogorov--Smirnov test. At 97\% confidence level, we find enhanced star formation across the star-forming main sequence of HAEs living in the most extreme `supergroup', corresponding to the top quartile of overdensities. Furthermore, we derive distribution functions of H$α$ luminosity and stellar mass in group and intergroup regions, approximately corresponding to 30 times and 8 times higher densities than the general field. As a consequence, we identify by 0.7 and 0.9 dex higher cutoffs in H$α$ luminosity and stellar mass functions in the dense groups, respectively. On the other hand, HAEs in the intergroup environment of the protocluster show similar distribution functions to those of field galaxies despite residing in significant overdensities. In the early phase of cluster formation, as inferred from our results, the densest parts in the protocluster have had an accelerated formation of massive galaxies. We expect that these eventually grow and transform into early-type galaxies at the bright end of the red sequence as seen in present-day rich clusters of galaxies.

astro-ph.GA↗
arXiv2017

Probing the Metal Enrichment of the Intergalactic Medium at $z=5-6$ Using the Hubble Space Telescope

We test the galactic outflow model by probing associated galaxies of four strong intergalactic CIV absorbers at $z=5$--6 using the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) ACS ramp narrowband filters. The four strong CIV absorbers reside at $z=5.74$, $5.52$, $4.95$, and $4.87$, with column densities ranging from $N_{\rm{CIV}}=10^{13.8}$ cm$^{-2}$ to $10^{14.8}$ cm$^{-2}$. At $z=5.74$, we detect an i-dropout Ly$α$ emitter (LAE) candidate with a projected impact parameter of 42 physical kpc from the CIV absorber. This LAE candidate has a Ly$α$-based star formation rate (SFR$_{\rm{Lyα}}$) of 2 $M_\odot$ yr$^{-1}$ and a UV-based SFR of 4 $M_\odot$ yr$^{-1}$. Although we cannot completely rule out that this $i$-dropout emitter may be an [OII] interloper, its measured properties are consistent with the CIV powering galaxy at $z=5.74$. For CIV absorbers at $z=4.95$ and $z=4.87$, although we detect two LAE candidates with impact parameters of 160 kpc and 200 kpc, such distances are larger than that predicted from the simulations. Therefore we treat them as non-detections. For the system at $z=5.52$, we do not detect LAE candidates, placing a 3-$σ$ upper limit of SFR$_{\rm{Lyα}}\approx 1.5\ M_\odot$ yr$^{-1}$. In summary, in these four cases, we only detect one plausible CIV source at $z=5.74$. Combining the modest SFR of the one detection and the three non-detections, our HST observations strongly support that smaller galaxies (SFR$_{\rm{Lyα}} \lesssim 2\ M_\odot$ yr$^{-1}$) are main sources of intergalactic CIV absorbers, and such small galaxies play a major role in the metal enrichment of the intergalactic medium at $z\gtrsim5$.

astro-ph.GA↗
arXiv2017

Deep Learning of Quasar Spectra to Discover and Characterize Damped Lya Systems

We have designed, developed, and applied a convolutional neural network (CNN) architecture using multi-task learning to search for and characterize strong HI Lya absorption in quasar spectra. Without any explicit modeling of the quasar continuum nor application of the predicted line-profile for Lya from quantum mechanics, our algorithm predicts the presence of strong HI absorption and estimates the corresponding redshift zabs and HI column density NHI, with emphasis on damped Lya systems (DLAs, absorbers with log NHI > 20.3). We tuned the CNN model using a custom training set of DLAs injected into DLA-free quasar spectra from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS), data release 5 (DR5). Testing on a held-back validation set demonstrates a high incidence of DLAs recovered by the algorithm (97.4% as DLAs and 99% as an HI absorber with log NHI > 19.5) and excellent estimates for zabs and NHI. Similar results are obtained against a human-generated survey of the SDSS DR5 dataset. The algorithm yields a low incidence of false positives and negatives but is challenged by overlapping DLAs and/or very high NHI systems. We have applied this CNN model to the quasar spectra of SDSS-DR7 and the Baryonic Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey (BOSS, data release 12) and provide catalogs of 4,913 and 50,969 DLAs respectively (including 1,659 and 9,230 high-confidence DLAs that were previously unpublished). This work validates the application of deep learning techniques to astronomical spectra for both classification and quantitative measurements.

astro-ph.GA↗