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We investigate the relationship between environment, morphology, and the star formation rate -- stellar mass relation derived from a sample of star-forming galaxies (commonly referred to as the `star formation main sequence') in the COSMOS field from 0 < z < 3.5. We constructed and fit the FUV--FIR SEDs of our stellar mass-selected sample of 111,537 galaxies with stellar and dust emission models using the public packages MAGPHYS and SED3FIT. From the best fit parameter estimates, we construct the star formation rate -- stellar mass relation as a function of redshift, local environment, NUVrJ color diagnostics, and morphology. We find that the shape of the main sequence derived from our color-color and sSFR-selected star forming galaxy population, including the turnover at high stellar mass, does not exhibit an environmental dependence at any redshift from 0 < z < 3.5. We investigate the role of morphology in the high mass end of the SFMS to determine whether bulge growth is driving the high mass turnover. We find that star-forming galaxies experience this turnover independent of bulge-to-total ratio, strengthening the case that the turnover is due to the disk component's specific star formation rate evolving with stellar mass rather than bulge growth., Comment: 20 pages, 12 figures, accepted in ApJ 15-Nov-2022

We examine the robustness of the color-color selection of quiescent galaxies (QGs) against contamination of dusty star-forming galaxies using the latest submillimeter data. We selected 18,304 QG candidates out to $z\sim$ 3 using the commonly adopted $NUV-r-J$ selection based on the high-quality multi-wavelength COSMOS2015 catalog. Using extremely deep 450 and 850 $\mu$m catalogs from the latest JCMT SCUBA-2 Large Programs, S2COSMOS, and STUDIES, as well as ALMA submillimeter, VLA 3 GHz, and $Spitzer$ MIPS 24 $\mu$m catalogs, we identified luminous dusty star-forming galaxies among the QG candidates. We also conducted stacking analyses in the SCUBA-2 450 and 850 $\mu$m images to look for less-luminous dusty galaxies among the QG candidates. By cross-matching to the 24 $\mu$m and 3 GHz data, we were able to identify a sub-group of "IR-radio-bright" QGs who possess a strong 450 and 850 $\mu$m stacking signal. The potential contamination of these luminous and less-luminous dusty galaxies accounts for approximately 10% of the color-selected QG candidates. In addition, there exists a spatial correlation between the luminous star-forming galaxies and the QGs at a $\lesssim60$ kpc scale. Finally, we found a high QG fraction among radio AGNs at $z<$ 1.5. Our data show a strong correlation between QGs and radio AGNs, which may suggest a connection between the quenching process and the radio-mode AGN feedback., Comment: This paper is accepted for publication on ApJ

We present direct spectroscopic measurements of the broad 2175~{\AA} absorption feature in 505 star-forming main-sequence galaxies at $1.3\le z\le 1.8$ using individual and stacked spectra from the zCOSMOS-deep survey. Significant 2175~{\AA} excess absorption features of moderate strength are measured, especially in the composite spectra. The excess absorption is well described by a Drude profile. The bump amplitude expressed in units of $k(\lambda)=A(\lambda)/E(B-V)$, relative to the featureless Calzetti et al. law, has a range $B_k\approx0.2\textrm{--}0.8$. The bump amplitude decreases with the specific star formation rate (sSFR), while it increases moderately with the stellar mass. However, a comparison with local "starburst" galaxies shows that the high-redshift main-sequence galaxies have stronger bump features, despite having a higher sSFR than the local sample. Plotting the bump strength against the $\Delta\log\mathrm{sSFR}\equiv \log \left( \mathrm{SFR}/\mathrm{SFR_{MS}}\right)$ relative to the main sequence, however, brings the two samples into much better concordance. This may indicate that it is the recent star formation history of the galaxies that determines the bump strength through the destruction of small carbonaceous grains by supernovae and intense radiation fields coupled with the time delay of $\sim1~\mathrm{Gyr}$ in the appearance of carbon-rich asymptotic giant branch stars., Comment: Published in ApJ on 2021 March 19

Based on well established scaling relation for star forming galaxies as a function of redshift, we argue that the implied growth by a large factor of their angular momentum requires that the angular momentum of the inflowing gas fuelling star formation and disk growth must also secularly increase. We then propose that star formation in disks can cease (quench) once the accreted material (mainly atomic hydrogen) comes in with excessive angular momentum for sustaining an adequate radial flow of cold, molecular gas. Existing observational evidence supporting this scenario is mentioned, together with some future observational studies that may validate (or invalidate) it., Comment: Five pages, one figure. Accepted for publication on MNRAS

Environment is one of the key external drivers of the galaxies, while active galactic nucleus (AGN) is one of the key internal drivers. Both of them play fundamental roles in regulating the formation and evolution of galaxies. We explore the interrelationship between environment and AGN in SDSS. At a given stellar mass, the specific star formation rate distribution of the AGN host galaxies remains unchanged with over-density, with the peak of the distribution around the Green Valley. We show that, at a given stellar mass, the AGN fraction that has been commonly used in previous studies (defined as the number of AGNs relative to all galaxies including passive and star forming ones) does decrease with increasing over-density for satellites. This is largely due to the fact that the fraction of passive galaxies strongly depends on environment. In order to investigate the intrinsic correlation between AGN and environment, especially under the assumption that AGN feedback is responsible for star formation quenching, the AGN fraction should be defined as the number of AGNs relative to the star-forming galaxies only. With the new definition, we find little dependence of AGN fraction on over-density, central/satellite, and group halo mass. There is only marginal evidence that AGN may prefer denser regions, which is possibly due to more frequent interaction of galaxies or higher merger rate in groups. Our results support the scenario that internal secular evolution is the predominant mechanism of triggering AGN activity, while external environment related processes only play a minor role., Comment: Accepted for publication in MNRAS, submitted on June 4. 11 pages, 7 figures

We explore the interrelationships between the galaxy group halo mass and various observable group properties. We propose a simple scenario that describes the evolution of the central galaxies and their host dark matter halos. Star formation quenching is one key process in this scenario, which leads to the different assembly histories of blue groups (group with a blue central) and red groups (group with a red central). For blue groups, both the central galaxy and the halo continue to grow their mass. For red groups, the central galaxy has been quenched and its stellar mass remains about constant, while its halo continues to grow by merging smaller halos. From this simple scenario, we speculate about the driving properties that should strongly correlate with the group halo mass. We then apply the machine learning algorithm the Random Forest (RF) regressor to blue groups and red groups separately in the semianalytical model L-GALAXIES to explore these nonlinear multicorrelations and to verify the scenario as proposed above. Remarkably, the results given by the RF regressor are fully consistent with the prediction from our simple scenario and hence provide strong support for it. As a consequence, the group halo mass can be more accurately determined from observable galaxy properties by the RF regressor with a 50% reduction in error. A halo mass more accurately determined in this way also enables more accurate investigations on the galaxy-halo connection and other important related issues, including galactic conformity and the effect of halo assembly bias on galaxy assembly., Comment: Accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journal, submitted on Feb 24. 16 pages, 6 figures. Grammar mistakes are corrected, results unchanged

We report the first sub-kiloparsec spatial resolution measurements of strongly inverted gas-phase metallicity gradients in two dwarf galaxies at $z$$\sim$2. The galaxies have stellar masses $\sim$$10^9M_\odot$, specific star-formation rate $\sim$20 Gyr$^{-1}$, and global metallicity $12+\log({\rm O/H})\sim8.1$ (1/4 solar), assuming the Maiolino et al. (2008) strong line calibrations of OIII/Hb and OII/Hb. Their metallicity radial gradients are measured to be highly inverted, i.e., 0.122$\pm$0.008 and 0.111$\pm$0.017 dex/kpc, which is hitherto unseen at such small masses in similar redshift ranges. From the Hubble Space Telescope observations of the source nebular emission and stellar continuum, we present the 2-dimensional spatial maps of star-formation rate surface density, stellar population age, and gas fraction, which show that our galaxies are currently undergoing rapid mass assembly via disk inside-out growth. More importantly, using a simple chemical evolution model, we find that the gas fractions for different metallicity regions cannot be explained by pure gas accretion. Our spatially resolved analysis based on a more advanced gas regulator model results in a spatial map of net gaseous outflows, triggered by active central starbursts, that potentially play a significant role in shaping the spatial distribution of metallicity by effectively transporting stellar nucleosynthesis yields outwards. The relation between wind mass loading factors and stellar surface densities measured in different regions of our galaxies shows that a single type of wind mechanism, driven by either energy or momentum conservation, cannot explain the entire galaxy. These sources present a unique constraint on the effects of gas flows on the early phase of disk growth from the perspective of spatially resolved chemical evolution within individual systems., Comment: 20 pages, 13 figures, 3 tables, accepted to ApJ. The accepted version includes a detailed description of extracting and fitting grism 1D/2D spectra (Appendix A) and a comparative study of deriving metallicity gradients using different strong line calibrations (Appendix C)

Increasingly good statistical data on the galaxy population at high and low redshift enable the development of new phenomenological approaches to galaxy evolution based on application of the simplest continuity equations. This has given new insights into the different ways in which star-formation in galaxies is quenched, the role of merging in the population, and into the control of star-formation in star-forming galaxies and the links between this and chemical evolution, in particular the existence of SFR as a second parameter in the mass-metallicity relation. The continuity approach provides a self-consistent view of the evolving population and exposes linkages between different aspects of galaxy evolution., Comment: To appear in the Proceedings of IAU Symposium No 295 "The intriguing life of massive galaxies", which was held in Beijing during August 2012