Krühler, T, Malesani, D, Fynbo, JPU, Hartoog, OE, Hjorth, J, Jakobsson, P, Perley, DA, Rossi, A, Schady, P, Schulze, S, Tanvir, NR, Vergani, SD, Wiersema, K, Afonso, PMJ, Bolmer, J, Cano, Z, Covino, S, D'Elia, V, De Ugarte Postigo, A, Filgas, R et al, Friis, M, Graham, JF, Greiner, J, Goldoni, P, Gomboc, A, Hammer, F, Japelj, J, Kann, DA, Kaper, L, Klose, S, Levan, AJ, Leloudas, G, Milvang-Jensen, B, Nicuesa Guelbenzu, A, Palazzi, E, Pian, E, Piranomonte, S, Sánchez-Ramírez, R, Savaglio, S, Selsing, J, Tagliaferri, G, Vreeswijk, PM, Watson, DJ and Xu, D (2015) GRB hosts through cosmic time: VLT/X-Shooter emission-line spectroscopy of 96 γ -ray-burst-selected galaxies at 0.1 < z < 3.6. Astronomy & Astrophysics, 581. ISSN 1432-0746

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Abstract

We present data and initial results from VLT/X-Shooter emission-line spectroscopy of 96 galaxies selected by long γ-ray bursts (GRBs) at 0.1 <z< 3.6, the largest sample of GRB host spectra available to date. Most of our GRBs were detected by Swift and 76% are at 0.5 <z< 2.5 with a median zmed ∼ 1.6. Based on Balmer and/or forbidden lines of oxygen, nitrogen, and neon, we measure systemic redshifts, star formation rates (SFR), visual attenuations (A<inf>V</inf>), oxygen abundances (12 + log (O/H)), and emission-line widths (σ). We study GRB hosts up to z ∼ 3.5 and find a strong change in their typical physical properties with redshift. The median SFR of our GRB hosts increases from SFR<inf>med</inf> ∼ 0.6 M yr^-1 at z ∼ 0.6 up to SFR<inf>med</inf> ∼ 15 M yr^-1 at z ∼ 2. A higher ratio of [O iii]/[O ii] at higher redshifts leads to an increasing distance of GRB-selected galaxies to the locus of local galaxies in the Baldwin-Phillips-Terlevich diagram. There is weak evidence for a redshift evolution in A<inf>V</inf> and σ, with the highest values seen at z ∼ 1.5 (A<inf>V</inf>) or z ∼ 2 (σ). Oxygen abundances of the galaxies are distributed between 12 + log (O/H) = 7.9 and 12 + log (O/H) = 9.0 with a median 12 + log (O/H)<inf>med</inf> ∼ 8.5. The fraction of GRB-selected galaxies with super-solar metallicities is ∼20% at z< 1 in the adopted metallicity scale. This is significantly less than the fraction of total star formation in similar galaxies, illustrating that GRBs are scarce in high metallicity environments. At z ∼ 3, sensitivity limits us to probing only the most luminous GRB hosts for which we derive metallicities of Z 0.5 Z. Together with a high incidence of Z ∼ 0.5 Z galaxies at z ∼ 1.5, this indicates that a metallicity dependence at low redshift will not be dominant at z ∼ 3. Significant correlations exist between the hosts' physical properties. Oxygen abundance, for example, relates to A<inf>V</inf> (12 + log (O/H) 0.17·A<inf>V</inf>), line width (12 + log (O/H) σ^0.6), and SFR (12 + log (O/H) SFR^0.2). In the last two cases, the normalization of the relations shift to lower metallicities at z> 2 by ∼0.4 dex. These properties of GRB hosts and their evolution with redshift can be understood in a cosmological context of star-forming galaxies and a picture in which the hosts' properties at low redshift are influenced by the tendency of GRBs to avoid the most metal-rich environments. © ESO, 2015.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	0201 Astronomical And Space Sciences
Subjects:	Q Science > QB Astronomy Q Science > QC Physics
Divisions:	Astrophysics Research Institute
Publisher:	EDP Sciences
Date Deposited:	21 Feb 2017 12:06
Last Modified:	04 Sep 2021 11:53
DOI or ID number:	10.1051/0004-6361/201425561
URI:	https://researchonline.ljmu.ac.uk/id/eprint/5686

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