The VIMOS Ultra Deep Survey: Ly$\alpha$ Emission and Stellar Populations of Star-Forming Galaxies at 2<z<2.5

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to investigate spectral and photometric properties of 854 faint ($i_{AB}$<~25 mag) star-forming galaxies (SFGs) at 2<z<2.5 using the VIMOS Ultra-Deep Survey (VUDS) spectroscopic data and deep multi-wavelength photometric data in three extensively studied extragalactic fields (ECDFS, VVDS, COSMOS). These SFGs were targeted for spectroscopy based on their photometric redshifts. The VUDS spectra are used to measure the UV spectral slopes ($\beta$) as well as Ly$\alpha$ equivalent widths (EW). On average, the spectroscopically measured $\beta$ (-1.36$\pm$0.02), is comparable to the photometrically measured $\beta$ (-1.32$\pm$0.02), and has smaller measurement uncertainties. The positive correlation of $\beta$ with the Spectral Energy Distribution (SED)-based measurement of dust extinction, E${}_{\mathrm{s}}$(B-V), emphasizes the importance of $\beta$ as an alternative dust indicator at high redshifts. To make a proper comparison, we divide these SFGs into three subgroups based on their rest-frame Ly$\alpha$ EW: SFGs with no Ly$\alpha$ emission (SFG${}_{\mathrm{N}}$; EW$\le$0Å), SFGs with Ly$\alpha$ emission (SFG${}_{\mathrm{L}}$; EW$>$0Å), and Ly$\alpha$ emitters (LAEs; EW$\ge$20Å). The fraction of LAEs at these redshifts is $\sim$10%, which is consistent with previous observations. We compared best-fit SED-estimated stellar parameters of the SFG${}_{\mathrm{N}}$, SFG${}_{\mathrm{L}}$ and LAE samples. For the luminosities probed here ($\sim$L${}^{\ast }$), we find that galaxies with and without Ly$\alpha$ in emission have small but significant differences in their SED-based properties. We find that LAEs have less dust, and lower star-formation rates (SFR) compared to non-LAEs. We also find that LAEs are less massive compared to non-LAEs, though the difference is smaller and less significant compared to the SFR and E${}_{\mathrm{s}}$(B-V). [abridged]

Accepted for publication in A&A, 19 pages, 10 figures, 1 table

References in corpus (22)

• Cosmic Star Formation History
• The Cosmic Evolution Survey (COSMOS) -- Overview
• A Highly Consistent Framework for the Evolution of the Star-Forming "Main Sequence" from z~0-6
• COSMOS Photometric Redshifts with 30-bands for 2-deg2
• The Mass-Metallicity Relation at z~2
• zCOSMOS: A Large VLT/VIMOS redshift survey covering 0 < z < 3 in the COSMOS field
• Constraining the Low-Mass Slope of the Star Formation Sequence at 0.5<z<2.5
• The Herschel view of the dominant mode of galaxy growth from z=4 to the present day
• UltraVISTA: a new ultra-deep near-infrared survey in COSMOS
• UV Luminosity Functions at z~4, 5, and 6 from the HUDF and other Deep HST ACS Fields: Evolution and Star Formation History
• The Chandra COSMOS Survey, I: Overview and Point Source Catalog
• Multi-Wavelength Constraints on the Cosmic Star Formation History from Spectroscopy: the Rest-Frame UV, H-alpha, and Infrared Luminosity Functions at Redshifts 1.9<z<3.4
• The VIMOS Ultra-Deep Survey: ~10,000 galaxies with spectroscopic redshifts to study galaxy assembly at early epochs 2<z<~6
• The Multiwavelength Survey by Yale-Chile (MUSYC): Deep Medium-Band optical imaging and high quality 32-band photometric redshifts in the ECDF-S
• The Evolution of the UV Luminosity Function from z ~ 0.75 to z ~ 2.5 using HST ERS WFC3/UVIS Observations
• The VIMOS Ultra-Deep Survey (VUDS): fast increase of the fraction of strong Lyman alpha emitters from z=2 to z=6
• VIMOS Ultra-Deep Survey (VUDS): Witnessing the Assembly of a Massive Cluster at z~3.3
• Physical properties of z~4 LBGs: differences between galaxies with and without Ly-alpha emission
• Spectral Energy Distribution Fitting of HETDEX Pilot Survey Lyman-alpha Emitters in COSMOS and GOODS-N
• A Census of Star-Forming Galaxies at z = 1-3 in the Subaru Deep Field
• First Infrared-based implications for the dust attenuation and star formation of typical Ly$\alpha$ emitters
• The star formation rate cookbook at 1 < z < 3: Extinction-corrected relations for UV & [OII]λ3727 luminosities

Cited by in corpus (40)

• The VIMOS Ultra Deep Survey: Nature, ISM properties, and ionizing spectra of CIII]1909 emitters at z=2-4
• The CALYMHA survey: Lya luminosity function and global escape fraction of Lya photons at z=2.23
• The VIMOS Ultra Deep Survey: Emerging from the Dark, a Massive Proto-Cluster at z~4.57
• The BOSS Emission-Line Lens Survey. IV. : Smooth Lens Models for the BELLS GALLERY Sample
• The nature of luminous Lyman-alpha emitters at z~2-3: maximal dust-poor starbursts and highly ionising AGN
• MMT Spectroscopy of Lyman-alpha at z$\simeq$7: Evidence for Accelerated Reionization Around Massive Galaxies
• A VLT/FORS2 view at $z\sim 6$: Lyman-$\alpha$ emitter fraction and galaxy physical properties at the edge of the epoch of cosmic reionization
• The MUSE Hubble Ultra Deep Field Survey X. Ly$\alpha$ Equivalent Widths at $2.9<z<6.6$
• The Effects of Stellar Population and Gas Covering Fraction on the Emergent Lyman Alpha Emission of High-Redshift Galaxies
• The redshift evolution of rest-UV spectroscopic properties in Lyman Break Galaxies at z ~ 2-4
• A Comprehensive Study of Ly$\alpha$ Emission in the High-redshift Galaxy Population
• The VIMOS Ultra-Deep Survey: evidence for AGN feedback in galaxies with CIII]-$\lambda$1908Å~emission 10.8 to 12.5 Gyr ago
• On the UV compactness and morphologies of typical Lyman-a emitters from z~2 to z~6
• Strong Ly$\alpha$ Emission in an Overdense Region at $z=6.8$: A Very Large ($R\sim 3$ physical Mpc) Ionized Bubble in COSMOS?
• The VANDELS survey: the relation between UV continuum slope and stellar metallicity in star-forming galaxies at z~3
• The evolution of rest-frame UV properties, Lya EWs and the SFR-Stellar mass relation at z~2-6 for SC4K LAEs
• The MUSE Hubble Ultra Deep Field Survey: XII. MgII emission and absorption in star-forming galaxies
• Direct evidence for Ly$\alpha$ depletion in the protocluster core
• The Stellar Mass, Star Formation Rate and Dark Matter Halo Properties of LAEs at $z\sim 2$
• How Do Galaxies trace a large scale structure?: A case study around a massive protocluster at $z=3.13$
• The VANDELS survey: the role of ISM and galaxy physical properties on the escape of Lyα emission in z $\sim$ 3.5 star-forming galaxies
• The VANDELS survey: A strong correlation between Ly$\alpha$ equivalent width and stellar metallicity at $3\le \mathbf{z}\le 5$
• Ly$\alpha$ Emitters with Very Large Ly$\alpha$ Equivalent Widths, EW${}_0$(Ly$\alpha$) $\simeq 200-400$ Å, at $z\sim 2$
• The extended epoch of galaxy formation: age dating of ~3600 galaxies with 2<z<6.5 in the VIMOS Ultra-Deep Survey
• A Deep Ly$\alpha$ Survey in ECDF-S and COSMOS: I. General Properties of Lyman-alpha Emitters at $z\sim 2$
• Statistical correlation between the distribution of Ly$\alpha$ emitters and IGM HI at $z\sim 2.2$ mapped by Subaru/Hyper Suprime-Cam
• The VIMOS Ultra Deep Survey: The role of HI kinematics and HI column density on the escape of Lyalpha photons in star-forming galaxies at 2<z<4
• Discovery of Protoclusters at z~3.7 & 4.9: Embedded in Primordial Superclusters
• Lyman-Alpha Escape from Low-Mass, Compact, High-Redshift Galaxies
• Similarities and uniqueness of Ly$\alpha$ emitters among star-forming galaxies at z=2.5
• The physical origin for spatially large scatter of IGM opacity at the end of reionization: the IGM Ly$\alpha$ opacity-galaxy density relation
• Lyα Halos around [O III]-Selected Galaxies in HETDEX
• Evolution of the UV slope of galaxies at cosmic morning (z > 4): the properties of extremely blue galaxies
• Stellar Populations of Lyman-alpha Emitting Galaxies in the HETDEX Survey I: An Analysis of LAEs in the GOODS-N Field
• Introducing the Texas Euclid Survey for Lyman Alpha (TESLA) Survey: Initial Study Correlating Galaxy Properties to Lyman-Alpha Emission
• Metal content of the circumgalactic medium around star-forming galaxies at z $\sim$ 2.6 as revealed by the VIMOS Ultra-Deep Survey
• UV & Ly$\alpha$ halos of Ly$\alpha$ emitters across environments at z=2.84
• The Role of Dust, UV Luminosity and Large-scale Environment on the Escape of Lya Photons: A Case Study of a Protocluster field at z = 3.1
• Galaxy Rest-Frame UV Colors at z ~ 2-4 with HST UVCANDELS
• Magnification bias reveals severe contamination in Hubble Frontier Field photo-z catalogs