Detection of Two Massive CO Systems in 4C 41.17 at z = 3.8
Abstract
We have detected CO(4-3) in the z=3.8 radio galaxy 4C 41.17 with the IRAM Interferometer. The CO is in two massive (M_dyn ~ 6 x 10^10 M_Sun) systems separated by 1.8" (13 kpc), and by 400 km/s in velocity, which coincide with two different dark lanes in a deep Ly-alpha image. One CO component coincides with the cm-radio core of the radio galaxy, and its redshift is close to that of the HeII AGN line. The second CO component is near the base of a cone-shaped region southwest of the nucleus, which resembles the emission-line cones seen in nearby AGN and starburst galaxies. The characteristics of the CO sources and their mm/submm dust continuum are similar to those found in ultraluminous IR galaxies and in some high-z radio galaxies and quasars. The fact that 4C 41.17 contains two CO systems is further evidence for the role of mergers in the evolution of galaxies at high redshift.
Cite
@article{arxiv.astro-ph/0411732,
title = {Detection of Two Massive CO Systems in 4C 41.17 at z = 3.8},
author = {Carlos De Breuck and Dennis Downes and Roberto Neri and Wil van Breugel and Michiel Reuland and Alain Omont and Rob Ivison},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:astro-ph/0411732},
year = {2007}
}
Comments
5 Pages, including 4 PostScript figures. Accepted for publication in Astronomy & Astrophysics Letters