4.7 Article

Stellar population and dust extinction in an ultraluminous infrared galaxy at z=1.135

Journal

MONTHLY NOTICES OF THE ROYAL ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY
Volume 402, Issue 1, Pages 335-344

Publisher

WILEY-BLACKWELL PUBLISHING, INC
DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2966.2009.15873.x

Keywords

dust; extinction; galaxies: evolution; galaxies: high-redshift; galaxies: individual: SST J1604+4304; galaxies: starburst; galaxies: stellar content; cosmology: observations; infrared: galaxies

Funding

  1. JPSP [17104002, 20340038, 20001003]

Ask authors/readers for more resources

We present the detailed optical to far-infrared (far-IR) observations of SST J1604+4304, an ultraluminous IR galaxy at z = 1.135. Analysing the stellar absorption lines, namely, the Ca ii H & K and Balmer H lines in the optical spectrum, we derive the upper limits of an age for the stellar population. Given this constraint, the minimum chi 2 method is used to fit the stellar population models to the observed spectral energy distribution from 0.44 to 5.8 mu m. We find the following properties. The stellar population has an age 40-200 Myr with a metallicity 2.5 Z(circle dot). The starlight is reddened by E(B - V) = 0.8. The reddening is caused by the foreground dust screen, indicating that dust is depleted in the starburst site and the starburst site is surrounded by a dust shell. The IR (8-1000 mu m) luminosity is L(ir) = 1.78 +/- 0.63 x 1012 L(circle dot). This is two times greater than that expected from the observed starlight, suggesting either that 1/2 of the starburst site is completely obscured at UV-optical wavelengths, or that 1/2 of L(ir) comes from active galactic nucleus (AGN) emission. The inferred dust mass is 2.0 +/- 1.0 x 108 M(circle dot). This is sufficient to form a shell surrounding the galaxy with an optical depth E(B - V) = 0.8. From our best stellar population model - an instantaneous starburst with an age 40 Myr - we infer the rate of 19 supernovae per year. Simply analytical models imply that 2.5 Z(circle dot) in stars was reached when the gas mass reduced to 30 per cent of the galaxy mass. The gas metallcity is 4.8 Z(circle dot) at this point. The gas-to-dust mass ratio is then 120 +/- 73. The inferred dust production rate is 0.24 +/- 0.12 M(circle dot) per SN. If 1/2 of L(ir) comes from AGN emission, the rate is 0.48 +/- 0.24 M(circle dot) per SN. We discuss the evolutionary link of SST J1604+4304 to other galaxy populations in terms of the stellar masses and the galactic winds, including optically selected low-luminosity Lyman alpha-emitters and submillimeter selected high-luminosity galaxies.

Authors

I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.

Reviews

Primary Rating

4.7
Not enough ratings

Secondary Ratings

Novelty
-
Significance
-
Scientific rigor
-
Rate this paper

Recommended

No Data Available
No Data Available