A dense, solar metallicity ISM in the z=4.2 dusty star-forming galaxy SPT0418-47

Abstract

We present a study of six far-infrared fine structure lines in the z=4.225 lensed dusty star-forming galaxy SPT0418-47 to probe the physical conditions of its InterStellar Medium (ISM). In particular, we report Atacama Pathfinder EXperiment (APEX) detections of the [OI]145um and [OIII]88um lines and Atacama Compact Array (ACA) detections of the [NII]122 and 205um lines. The [OI]145um / [CII]158um line ratio is ~5x higher compared to the average of local galaxies. We interpret this as evidence that the ISM is dominated by photo-dissociation regions with high gas densities. The line ratios, and in particular those of [OIII]88um and [NII]122um imply that the ISM in SPT0418-47 is already chemically enriched close to solar metallicity. While the strong gravitational amplification was required to detect these lines with APEX, larger samples can be observed with the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), and should allow to determine if the observed dense, solar metallicity ISM is common among these highly star-forming galaxies.

Accepted for publication in Astronomy & Astrophysics. Revised to match language-edited version and adding 1 missing citation

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