dorsal/arxiv
View SchemaBreathless BEARS: [O$_{\rm \,III}$] 88$\mu$m Emission of Dusty Star-Forming Galaxies at $z = 3-4$
| Authors | T. J. L. C. Bakx, Hiddo S. B. Algera, Prachi Prajapati, George Bendo, Stefano Berta, Laura Bonavera, Pierre Cox, Joaquin González-Nuevo, Masato Hagimoto, Kevin Harrington, Matthew Lehnert, Stephen Serjeant, Pasquale Temi, Paul van der Werf, Chentao Yang, Gianfranco De Zotti |
|---|---|
| Categories | |
| ArXiv ID | 2601.09780vv1 |
| URL | https://arxiv.org/abs/2601.09780 |
| License | http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ |
Abstract
We present [O$_{\rm \,III}$] 88$\mu$m observations towards four ${\it Herschel}$-selected dusty star-forming galaxies (DSFGs; log$_{10}$ $\mu$L$_{\rm IR}$/L$_{\odot}$ = 13.5 - 14 at $z = 2.9 - 4$) using the Atacama Compact Array (ACA) in Bands 9 and 10. We detect [O$_{\rm \,III}$] emission in all four targets at >3$\sigma$, finding line luminosity ratios ($L_{\rm [O_{\rm \,III}]}$ / L$_{\rm IR}$ = 10$^{-4.2}$ to 10$^{-3}$) similar to local spiral galaxies, and an order of magnitude lower when compared with local dwarf galaxies as well as high-redshift Lyman-break galaxies. Using the short-wavelength capabilities of the ACA, these observations bridge the populations of galaxies with [O$_{\rm \,III}$] emission at low redshift from space missions and at high redshift from ground-based studies. The difference in [O$_{\rm \,III}$] emission between these DSFGs and other high-redshift galaxies reflects their more evolved stellar populations (> 10 Myr), larger dust reservoirs (M$_{\rm dust}$ $\sim$ 10$^{9 - 11}$ M$_{\odot}$), metal-rich interstellar medium ($Z \sim 0.5 - 2$ Z$_{\odot}$), and likely weaker ionization radiation fields. Ancillary [C$_{\rm \,II}$] emission on two targets provide $L_{[{\rm O}_{\rm \,III}]} / L_{[{\rm C}_{\rm \,II}]}$ ratios at 0.3 - 0.9, suggesting that ionized gas represents a smaller fraction of the total gas reservoir in DSFGs, consistent with theoretical models of DSFGs as transitional systems between gas-rich, turbulent disks and more evolved, gas-poor galaxies. Expanding samples of DSFGs with [O$_{\rm \,III}$] emission will be key to place this heterogeneous, poorly-understood galactic phase in its astrophysical context.
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"date_created": "2026-02-17T05:53:24.050000Z",
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"abstract": "We present [O$_{\\rm \\,III}$] 88$\\mu$m observations towards four ${\\it Herschel}$-selected dusty star-forming galaxies (DSFGs; log$_{10}$ $\\mu$L$_{\\rm IR}$/L$_{\\odot}$ = 13.5 - 14 at $z = 2.9 - 4$) using the Atacama Compact Array (ACA) in Bands 9 and 10. We detect [O$_{\\rm \\,III}$] emission in all four targets at \u003e3$\\sigma$, finding line luminosity ratios ($L_{\\rm [O_{\\rm \\,III}]}$ / L$_{\\rm IR}$ = 10$^{-4.2}$ to 10$^{-3}$) similar to local spiral galaxies, and an order of magnitude lower when compared with local dwarf galaxies as well as high-redshift Lyman-break galaxies. Using the short-wavelength capabilities of the ACA, these observations bridge the populations of galaxies with [O$_{\\rm \\,III}$] emission at low redshift from space missions and at high redshift from ground-based studies. The difference in [O$_{\\rm \\,III}$] emission between these DSFGs and other high-redshift galaxies reflects their more evolved stellar populations (\u003e 10 Myr), larger dust reservoirs (M$_{\\rm dust}$ $\\sim$ 10$^{9 - 11}$ M$_{\\odot}$), metal-rich interstellar medium ($Z \\sim 0.5 - 2$ Z$_{\\odot}$), and likely weaker ionization radiation fields. Ancillary [C$_{\\rm \\,II}$] emission on two targets provide $L_{[{\\rm O}_{\\rm \\,III}]} / L_{[{\\rm C}_{\\rm \\,II}]}$ ratios at 0.3 - 0.9, suggesting that ionized gas represents a smaller fraction of the total gas reservoir in DSFGs, consistent with theoretical models of DSFGs as transitional systems between gas-rich, turbulent disks and more evolved, gas-poor galaxies. Expanding samples of DSFGs with [O$_{\\rm \\,III}$] emission will be key to place this heterogeneous, poorly-understood galactic phase in its astrophysical context.",
"arxiv_id": "2601.09780",
"authors": [
"T. J. L. C. Bakx",
"Hiddo S. B. Algera",
"Prachi Prajapati",
"George Bendo",
"Stefano Berta",
"Laura Bonavera",
"Pierre Cox",
"Joaquin Gonz\u00e1lez-Nuevo",
"Masato Hagimoto",
"Kevin Harrington",
"Matthew Lehnert",
"Stephen Serjeant",
"Pasquale Temi",
"Paul van der Werf",
"Chentao Yang",
"Gianfranco De Zotti"
],
"categories": [
"astro-ph.GA"
],
"license": "http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
"title": "Breathless BEARS: [O$_{\\rm \\,III}$] 88$\\mu$m Emission of Dusty Star-Forming Galaxies at $z = 3-4$",
"url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/2601.09780",
"version": "v1"
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"variant": "snapshot-2026-01-17",
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