The evolution of the dust and gas content in galaxies

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dc.contributorVirginia Techen
dc.contributor.authorSantini, P.en
dc.contributor.authorMaiolino, R.en
dc.contributor.authorMagnelli, B.en
dc.contributor.authorLutz, D.en
dc.contributor.authorLamastra, A.en
dc.contributor.authorCausi, G. L.en
dc.contributor.authorEales, S.en
dc.contributor.authorAndreani, P.en
dc.contributor.authorBerta, S.en
dc.contributor.authorBuat, V.en
dc.contributor.authorCooray, A.en
dc.contributor.authorCresci, G.en
dc.contributor.authorDaddi, E.en
dc.contributor.authorFarrah, D.en
dc.contributor.authorFontana, A.en
dc.contributor.authorFranceschini, A.en
dc.contributor.authorGenzel, R.en
dc.contributor.authorGranato, G.en
dc.contributor.authorGrazian, A.en
dc.contributor.authorLe Floc'h, E.en
dc.contributor.authorMagdis, G. E.en
dc.contributor.authorMagliocchetti, M.en
dc.contributor.authorMannucci, F.en
dc.contributor.authorMenci, N.en
dc.contributor.authorNordon, R.en
dc.contributor.authorOliver, S.en
dc.contributor.authorPopesso, P.en
dc.contributor.authorPozzi, F.en
dc.contributor.authorRiguccini, L.en
dc.contributor.authorRodighiero, G.en
dc.contributor.authorRosario, D. J.en
dc.contributor.authorSalvato, M.en
dc.contributor.authorScott, D.en
dc.contributor.authorSilva, L.en
dc.contributor.authorTacconi, L.en
dc.contributor.authorViero, M.en
dc.contributor.authorWang, L.en
dc.contributor.authorWuyts, S.en
dc.contributor.authorXu, K.en
dc.contributor.departmentPhysicsen
dc.date.accessed2014-05-08en
dc.date.accessioned2014-05-14T17:03:33Zen
dc.date.available2014-05-14T17:03:33Zen
dc.date.issued2014-02en
dc.description.abstractWe use deep Herschel observations taken with both PACS and SPIRE imaging cameras to estimate the dust mass of a sample of galaxies extracted from the GOODS-S, GOODS-N and the COSMOS fields. We divide the redshift-stellar mass (M-star)-star formation rate (SFR) parameter space into small bins and investigate average properties over this grid. In the first part of the work we investigate the scaling relations between dust mass, stellar mass and SFR out to z = 2.5. No clear evolution of the dust mass with redshift is observed at a given SFR and stellar mass. We find a tight correlation between the SFR and the dust mass, which, under reasonable assumptions, is likely a consequence of the Schmidt-Kennicutt (S-K) relation. The previously observed correlation between the stellar content and the dust content flattens or sometimes disappears when considering galaxies with the same SFR. Our finding suggests that most of the correlation between dust mass and stellar mass obtained by previous studies is likely a consequence of the correlation between the dust mass and the SFR combined with the main sequence, i.e., the tight relation observed between the stellar mass and the SFR and followed by the majority of star-forming galaxies. We then investigate the gas content as inferred from dust mass measurements. We convert the dust mass into gas mass by assuming that the dust-to-gas ratio scales linearly with the gas metallicity (as supported by many observations). For normal star-forming galaxies (on the main sequence) the inferred relation between the SFR and the gas mass (integrated S-K relation) broadly agrees with the results of previous studies based on CO measurements, despite the completely different approaches. We observe that all galaxies in the sample follow, within uncertainties, the same S-K relation. However, when investigated in redshift intervals, the S-K relation shows a moderate, but significant redshift evolution. The bulk of the galaxy population at z similar to 2 converts gas into stars with an efficiency (star formation efficiency, SFE = SFR/M-gas, equal to the inverse of the depletion time) about 5 times higher than at z similar to 0. However, it is not clear what fraction of such variation of the SFE is due to an intrinsic redshift evolution and what fraction is simply a consequence of high-z galaxies having, on average, higher SFR, combined with the super-linear slope of the S-K relation (while other studies find a linear slope). We confirm that the gas fraction (f(gas) = M-gas/(M-gas + M-star)) decreases with stellar mass and increases with the SFR. We observe no evolution with redshift once M-star and SFR are fixed. We explain these trends by introducing a universal relation between gas fraction, stellar mass and SFR that does not evolve with redshift, at least out to z similar to 2.5. Galaxies move across this relation as their gas content evolves across the cosmic epochs. We use the 3D fundamental f(gas)-M-star-SFR relation, along with the evolution of the main sequence with redshift, to estimate the evolution of the gas fraction in the average population of galaxies as a function of redshift and as a function of stellar mass: we find that M-star greater than or similar to 10(11) M-circle dot galaxies show the strongest evolution at z greater than or similar to 1. 3 and a flatter trend at lower redshift, while f(gas) decreases more regularly over the entire redshift range probed in M-star less than or similar to 10(11) M-circle dot galaxies, in agreement with a downsizing scenario.en
dc.description.sponsorshipBMVIT (Austria)en
dc.description.sponsorshipESA-PRODEX (Belgium)en
dc.description.sponsorshipCEA/CNES (France)en
dc.description.sponsorshipDLR (Germany)en
dc.description.sponsorshipASI/INAF (Italy)en
dc.description.sponsorshipCICYT/MCYT (Spain)en
dc.description.sponsorshipCSA (Canada)en
dc.description.sponsorshipNAOC (China)en
dc.description.sponsorshipCEA (France)en
dc.description.sponsorshipCNES (France)en
dc.description.sponsorshipCNRS (France)en
dc.description.sponsorshipASI (Italy)en
dc.description.sponsorshipMCINN (Spain)en
dc.description.sponsorshipSNSB (Sweden)en
dc.description.sponsorshipSTFC (UK)en
dc.description.sponsorshipUKSA (UK)en
dc.description.sponsorshipNASA (USA) ASI I/005/11/0en
dc.identifier.citationSantini, P., et al., "The evolution of the dust and gas content in galaxies," A&A 562, A30 (2014). DOI: 10.1051/0004-6361/201322835en
dc.identifier.doihttps://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/201322835en
dc.identifier.issn0004-6361en
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10919/48016en
dc.identifier.urlhttp://www.aanda.org/articles/aa/abs/2014/02/aa22835-13/aa22835-13.htmlen
dc.language.isoen_USen
dc.publisherEDP SCIENCESen
dc.rightsIn Copyrighten
dc.rights.urihttp://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/en
dc.subjectgalaxies: evolutionen
dc.subjectgalaxies: fundamental parametersen
dc.subjectgalaxies:en
dc.subjecthigh-redshiften
dc.subjectgalaxies: ismen
dc.subjectinfrared: galaxiesen
dc.subjectstar-forming galaxiesen
dc.subjectspectral energy-distributionsen
dc.subjectco-to-h-2en
dc.subjectconversion factoren
dc.subjectmass-metallicity relationen
dc.subjecthigh-redshift galaxiesen
dc.subjectactive galactic nucleien
dc.subjectlarge-magellanic-clouden
dc.subjectgoods-music sampleen
dc.subjectm-asterisk planeen
dc.subjectsimilar-to 2.5en
dc.subjectastronomy & astrophysicsen
dc.titleThe evolution of the dust and gas content in galaxiesen
dc.title.serialAstronomy & Astrophysicsen
dc.typeArticle - Refereeden

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