Warm dust in high-z galaxies: origin and implications

ALMA observations have revealed the presence of dust in galaxies in the Epoch of Reionization (EoR; redshift z > 6). However, the dust temperature, T-d, remains unconstrained, and this introduces large uncertainties, particularly in the dust mass determinations. Using an analytical and physically motivated model, we show that dust in high-z, star-forming giant molecular clouds (GMCs), largely dominating the observed far-infrared luminosity, is warmer (T-d greater than or similar to 60 K) than locally. This is due to the more compact GMC structure induced by the higher gas pressure and turbulence characterizing early galaxies. The compactness also delays GMC dispersal by stellar feedback, thus similar to 40 per cent of the total UV radiation emitted by newly born stars remains obscured. A higher T-d has additional implications: it (a) reduces the tension between local and high-z IRX-beta relation, and (b) alleviates the problem of the uncomfortably large dust masses deduced from observations of some EoR galaxies.