Nature of High Equivalent Width Emitters in the Epoch of Reionization Revealed by JWST Medium-band Imaging

Abstract

Extreme emission line galaxies (EELGs) at high redshifts are considered key contributors to cosmic reionization at $z>6$ due to their higher ionization efficiencies. We have identified 119 H$\beta$ + [OIII] emitters at $z\sim 7$ selected by a flux excess in the medium-band filter F410M in the public James Webb Space Telescope Cycle-1 fields. Our emitters exhibit a wide range in rest-frame H$\beta$ + [OIII] equivalent width (EWs), 420 $<$ EW${}_0$/Å $<$ 6850 (with the median value of $\sim 1700$ Å). Among them, 19 are EW${}_0$ $>$ 3000 Å, which represent extreme populations even in the context of recent findings with JWST. They are characterized by (i) low stellar mass ($\sim 3\times 10^7$ ${\mathrm{M}}_{\odot }$), (ii) blue colors (${\beta }_{\mathrm{UV}}\sim -2.2$), and (iii) low dust attenuation ($A_{\mathrm{V}}\sim 0.1$ mag). We discuss the physical mechanisms responsible for the observed high rest-frame H$\beta$ + [OIII] EWs, including (1) photoionization by AGN, (2) stellar photoionization in the vicinity of HII regions, and (3) radiative shocks powered by outflows either from AGN or massive stars. Notably, we find 13 emitters with spatially offset H$\beta$ + [OIII] emission compared to the UV and stellar components. Given the absence of obvious signatures of actively accreting black holes, these emitters are likely under strong feedback-driven winds from massive stars. Lastly, we report a unique overdensity of EELGs in one of the observed fields. The discovery of such a "star-bursting" overdensity supports the idea that large ionizing bubbles formed around some EEGLs in the early Universe.

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