The spatial clustering of star-forming galaxies at redshifts 1.4 ≲ z ≲ 3.5

We analyzed the spatial distribution of 28,500 photometrically selected galaxies with magnitude 23.5 < R-AB < 25.5 and redshift 1.4 < z < 3.5 in 21 fields with a total area of 0.81 deg(2). The galaxies were divided into three subsamples, with mean redshifts (z) over bar = 1.7, 2.2, and 2.9, according to their U(n)GR colors. Combining the galaxies' measured angular clustering with redshift distributions inferred from 1600 spectroscopic redshifts, we find comoving correlation lengths at the three redshifts of r(0) = 4.5 +/- 0.6, 4.2 +/- 0.5, and 4.0 +/- 0.6 h(-1) Mpc, respectively, and infer a roughly constant correlation function slope of gamma = 1.6 +/- 0.1. We derive similar numbers from the 1600 object spectroscopic sample itself with a new statistic, K, that is insensitive to many possible systematics. Galaxies that are bright in R (lambda(rest) similar to 1500-2500 Angstrom) cluster more strongly than fainter galaxies at z = 2.9 and 2.2 but not, apparently, at z = 1.7. Comparison to a numerical simulation that is consistent with recent WMAP observations suggests that galaxies in our samples are associated with dark matter halos of mass 10(11.2)-10(11.8) (z = 2.9), 10(11.8) - 10(12.2) ( z = 2.2), and 10(11.9) - 10(12.3)M(.) ( z = 1.7) and that a small fraction of the halos contain more than one galaxy that satisfies our selection criteria. Adding recent observations of galaxy clustering at z similar to 0 and similar to 1 to the simulation results, we conclude that the typical object in our samples will evolve into an elliptical galaxy by redshift z = 0 and will already have an early-type spectrum by redshift z = 1. We comment briefly on the implied relationship between galaxies in our survey and those selected with other techniques.