Physical conditions of the interstellar medium of high-redshift, strongly lensed submillimetre galaxies from the Herschel-ATLAS

I. Valtchanov, J. Virdee, R. J. Ivison, B. Swinyard, P. van der Werf, D. Rigopoulou, E. da Cunha, R. Lupu, D. J. Benford, D. Riechers, Ian Smail, M. Jarvis, C. Pearson, H. Gomez, R. Hopwood, B. Altieri, M. Birkinshaw, D. Coia, L. Conversi, A. CoorayG. de Zotti, L. Dunne, D. Frayer, L. Leeuw, A. Marston, M. Negrello, M. Sanchez Portal, D. Scott, M. A. Thompson, M. Vaccari, M. Baes, D. Clements, M. J. Michalowski, H. Dannerbauer, S. Serjeant, R. Auld, S. Buttiglione, A. Cava, A. Dariush, S. Dye, S. Eales, J. Fritz, E. Ibar, S. Maddox, E. Pascale, M. Pohlen, E. Rigby, G. Rodighiero, D. J.B. Smith, P. Temi, J. Carpenter, A. Bolatto, M. Gurwell, J. D. Vieira

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

We present Herschel-Spectral and Photometric Imaging Receiver (SPIRE) Fourier transform spectrometer (FTS) and radio follow-up observations of two Herschel-Astrophysical Terahertz Large Area Survey (H-ATLAS)-detected strongly lensed distant galaxies. In one of the targeted galaxies H-ATLAS J090311.6+003906 (SDP.81), we detect [Oiii]88μm and [Cii]158μm lines at a signal-to-noise ratio of ~5. We do not have any positive line identification in the other fainter target H-ATLAS J091305.0-005343 (SDP.130). Currently, SDP.81 is the faintest submillimetre galaxy with positive line detections with the FTS, with continuum flux just below 200mJy in the 200-600μm wavelength range. The derived redshift of SDP.81 from the two detections isz= 3.043 ± 0.012, in agreement with ground-based CO measurements. This is the first detection byHerschelof the [Oiii]88μm line in a galaxy at redshift higher than 0.05. Comparing the observed lines and line ratios with a grid of photodissociation region (PDR) models with different physical conditions, we derive the PDR cloud densityn≈ 2000cm-3 and the far-ultraviolet ionizing radiation fieldG0≈ 200 (in units of the Habing field - the local Galactic interstellar radiation field of 1.6 × 10-6 W m-2). Using the CO-derived molecular mass and the PDR properties, we estimate the effective radius of the emitting region to be 500-700pc. These characteristics are typical for star-forming, high-redshift galaxies. The radio observations indicate that SDP.81 deviates significantly from the local far-infrared/radio (FIR/radio) correlation, which hints that some fraction of the radio emission is coming from an active galactic nucleus (AGN). The constraints on the source size from millimetre-wave observations put a very conservative upper limit of the possible AGN contribution to less than 33 per cent. These indications, together with the high [Oiii]/FIR ratio and the upper limit of [Oi]63μm/[Cii]158μm, suggest that some fraction of the ionizing radiation is likely to originate from the AGN.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)3473-3484
Number of pages12
JournalMonthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Volume415
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - Aug 2011
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Galaxies: evolution
  • Galaxies: individual: SDP.130: H-ATLAS J091305.0-005343
  • Infrared: galaxies
  • Radio continuum: galaxies
  • Submillimetre: ISM

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Astronomy and Astrophysics
  • Space and Planetary Science

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