Early Results from GLASS–JWST. XXI. Rapid Asembly of a Galaxy at z = 6.23 Revealed by Its C/O Abundance
Articolo
Data di Pubblicazione:
2023
Citazione:
Early Results from GLASS–JWST. XXI. Rapid Asembly of a Galaxy at z = 6.23 Revealed by Its C/O Abundance / T. Jones, R. Sanders, Y. Chen, X. Wang, T. Morishita, G. Roberts-Borsani, T. Treu, A. Dressler, E. Merlin, D. Paris, P. Santini, P. Bergamini, A. Henry, E. Huntzinger, T. Nanayakkara, K. Boyett, M. Bradac, G. Brammer, A. Calabró, K. Glazebrook, K. Grasha, S. Mascia, L. Pentericci, M. Trenti, B. Vulcani. - In: THE ASTROPHYSICAL JOURNAL LETTERS. - ISSN 2041-8205. - 951:1(2023 Jul 03), pp. L17.1-L17.11. [10.3847/2041-8213/acd938]
Abstract:
The abundance of carbon relative to oxygen (C/O) is a promising probe of star formation history in the early universe, as the ratio changes with time due to production of these elements by different nucleosynthesis pathways. We present a measurement of log(C/O) = -1.01 +/- 0.12 (stat) +/- 0.15 (sys) in a z = 6.23 galaxy observed as part of the GLASS-JWST Early Release Science Program. Notably, we achieve good precision thanks to the detection of the rest-frame ultraviolet O III], CIII], and C IV emission lines delivered by JWST/NIRSpec. The C/O abundance is similar to 0.8 dex lower than the solar value and is consistent with the expected yield from core-collapse supernovae, indicating that longer-lived intermediate-mass stars have not fully contributed to carbon enrichment. This in turn implies rapid buildup of a young stellar population with age less than or similar to 100 Myr in a galaxy seen similar to 900 Myr after the big bang. Our chemical abundance analysis is consistent with spectral energy distribution modeling of JWST/NIRCam photometric data, which indicates a current stellar mass log M-star/M-circle dot = 8.4(-0.2)(+0.4) and specific star formation rate similar or equal to 20 Gyr(-1). These results showcase the value of chemical abundances and C/O in particular to study the earliest stages of galaxy assembly.
Tipologia IRIS:
01 - Articolo su periodico
Elenco autori:
T. Jones, R. Sanders, Y. Chen, X. Wang, T. Morishita, G. Roberts-Borsani, T. Treu, A. Dressler, E. Merlin, D. Paris, P. Santini, P. Bergamini, A. Henry, E. Huntzinger, T. Nanayakkara, K. Boyett, M. Bradac, G. Brammer, A. Calabró, K. Glazebrook, K. Grasha, S. Mascia, L. Pentericci, M. Trenti, B. Vulcani
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