Mass assembly and morphological transformations since z ∼ 3 from CANDELS

We quantify the evolution of the stellar mass functions (SMFs) of star-forming and quiescent galaxies as a function of morphology from z ∼ 3 to the present. Our sample consists of ∼50 000 galaxies in the CANDELS fields (∼880 arcmin2), which we divide into four main morphological types, i.e. pure bul...

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Veröffentlicht in:Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society Jg. 462; H. 4; S. 4495 - 4516
Hauptverfasser: Huertas-Company, M., Bernardi, M., Pérez-González, P. G., Ashby, M. L. N., Barro, G., Conselice, C., Daddi, E., Dekel, A., Dimauro, P., Faber, S. M., Grogin, N. A., Kartaltepe, J. S., Kocevski, D. D., Koekemoer, A. M., Koo, D. C., Mei, S., Shankar, F.
Format: Journal Article
Sprache:Englisch
Veröffentlicht: London Oxford University Press 11.11.2016
Oxford University Press (OUP): Policy P - Oxford Open Option A
Schlagworte:
Accretion disks
Astrophysics
Disks
Galaxies
Morphology
Physics
Quenching
Spheroids
Spirals
Star & galaxy formation
Star formation
Stellar mass
Transformations
galaxies: structure
galaxies: abundances
galaxies: evolution
galaxies: high-redshift
ISSN:0035-8711, 1365-2966
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Zusammenfassung:We quantify the evolution of the stellar mass functions (SMFs) of star-forming and quiescent galaxies as a function of morphology from z ∼ 3 to the present. Our sample consists of ∼50 000 galaxies in the CANDELS fields (∼880 arcmin2), which we divide into four main morphological types, i.e. pure bulge-dominated systems, pure spiral disc-dominated, intermediate two-component bulge+disc systems and irregular disturbed galaxies. At z ∼ 2, 80 per cent of the stellar mass density of star-forming galaxies is in irregular systems. However, by z ∼ 0.5, irregular objects only dominate at stellar masses below 109 M⊙. A majority of the star-forming irregulars present at z ∼ 2 undergo a gradual transformation from disturbed to normal spiral disc morphologies by z ∼ 1 without significant interruption to their star formation. Rejuvenation after a quenching event does not seem to be common except perhaps for the most massive objects, because the fraction of bulge-dominated star-forming galaxies with M */M⊙ > 1010.7 reaches 40 per cent at z < 1. Quenching implies the presence of a bulge: the abundance of massive red discs is negligible at all redshifts over 2 dex in stellar mass. However, the dominant quenching mechanism evolves. At z > 2, the SMF of quiescent galaxies above M* is dominated by compact spheroids. Quenching at this early epoch destroys the disc and produces a compact remnant unless the star-forming progenitors at even higher redshifts are significantly more dense. At 1 < z < 2, the majority of newly quenched galaxies are discs with a significant central bulge. This suggests that mass quenching at this epoch starts from the inner parts and preserves the disc. At z < 1, the high-mass end of the passive SMF is globally in place and the evolution mostly happens at stellar masses below 1010 M⊙. These low-mass galaxies are compact, bulge-dominated systems, which were environmentally quenched: destruction of the disc through ram-pressure stripping is the likely process.
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ISSN:0035-8711
1365-2966
DOI:10.1093/mnras/stw1866