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arXiv 1802.06378astro-ph.GA
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Lyman连续发射星系的中性气体性质:来自UV吸收线的柱密度和覆盖分数

Neutral gas properties of Lyman continuum emitting galaxies: column densities and covering fractions from UV absorption lines

Simon Gazagnes, John Chisholm, Daniel Schaerer, Anne Verhamme, Jane R. Rigby, Matthew Bayliss

摘要:

电离光子从星系逃逸到星系际介质的过程知之甚少。为了了解Lyman连续谱(LyC)光子是如何逃逸星系的,我们利用18个具有莱曼系观测的恒星形成星系的紫外HI和金属吸收线来约束HI覆盖率和柱密度。这些星系中有9个是确认的LyC发射体。我们拟合了恒星连续谱、尘埃衰减、金属和HI属性,以一致地确定紫外线衰减,以及中性氢和金属的柱密度和覆盖因子。我们使用合成的星际吸收线来探索我们测量的系统学。然后,我们将我们的方法应用到观测到的低红移和z-2星系的紫外光谱。在所有的星系中,所观测到的HI线都是饱和的。使用OI柱密度和观察到的O/H丰度的间接方法产生HI柱密度为18.6至20 cm-2。这些柱子太高了,不允许电离光子逃逸。我们发现,已知的LyC泄漏有HI覆盖分数小于单位。电离光子通过致密星际介质中的光学薄孔/通道逃逸。我们的模拟证实,HI覆盖馏分准确地恢复。的SiII和HI覆盖分数的线性比例,与观察堆叠莱曼break星系光谱在z-3。因此,通过经验校正,SiII吸收线也可以用于确定HI覆盖。最后,我们表明,一个一致的拟合尘埃衰减,连续谱和吸收线需要适当地推断覆盖部分的中性气体,并随后推断电离辐射的逃逸分数。这些测量可以估计LyC逃逸分数,正如我们在配套文件中所证明的那样。

英文摘要:

The processes allowing the escape of ionizing photons from galaxies into the intergalactic medium are poorly known. To understand how Lyman continuum (LyC) photons escape galaxies, we constrain the HI covering fractions and column densities using ultraviolet HI and metal absorption lines of 18 star-forming galaxies which have Lyman series observations. Nine of these galaxies are confirmed LyC emitters. We fit the stellar continuum, dust attenuation, metal, and HI properties to consistently determine the UV attenuation, as well as the column densities and covering factors of neutral hydrogen and metals. We use synthetic interstellar absorption lines to explore the systematics of our measurements. Then we apply our method to the observed UV spectra of low-redshift and z-2 galaxies. The observed HI lines are found to be saturated in all galaxies. An indirect approach using OI column densities and the observed O/H abundances yields HI column densities of 18.6 to 20 cm-2. These columns are too high to allow the escape of ionizing photons. We find that the known LyC leakers have HI covering fractions less than unity. Ionizing photons escape through optically thin holes/channels in a clumpy interstellar medium. Our simulations confirm that the HI covering fractions are accurately recovered. The SiII and HI covering fractions scale linearly, in agreement with observations from stacked Lyman break galaxy spectra at z-3. Thus, with an empirical correction, the SiII absorption lines can also be used to determine the HI coverage. Finally, we show that a consistent fitting of dust attenuation, continuum and absorption lines is required to properly infer the covering fraction of neutral gas and subsequently to infer the escape fraction of ionizing radiation. These measurements can estimate the LyC escape fraction, as we demonstrate in a companion paper.

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