Related papers: Evolution of the galaxy merger rate in model unive…
The cumulative number density matching approach equates number densities between adjacent redshifts to derive empirical galaxy evolution tracks from the observed galaxy stellar mass function. However, it is well known that this approach…
Recent work has suggested that the amplitude of the size mass relation of massive early type galaxies evolves with redshift. Here we use a semi-analytical galaxy formation model to study the size evolution of massive early type galaxies. We…
This paper presents a study of the specific merger rate as a function of group membership, local environment, and redshift in a very large, $500h^{-1} Mpc$, cosmological N-body simulation, the \textit{Millennium Simulation}. The goal is to…
In hierarchical models of galaxy formation, ellipticals form from the merging of disk galaxies drawn together by gravity as their surrounding dark halos coalesce. Using semi-analytic techniques, we are able to follow the merging, star…
We are exploring galaxy evolution in low density environments exploiting smooth particle hydrodynamic simulations including chemo-photometric implementation. From a large grid of simulations of galaxy encounters and mergers starting from…
Using a model for self-regulated growth of black holes (BHs) in mergers involving gas-rich galaxies, we study the relationship between quasars and the population of merging galaxies and predict the merger-induced star formation rate density…
It is difficult to accurately identify galaxy mergers and it is an even larger challenge to classify them by their mass ratio or merger stage. In previous work we used a suite of simulated mergers to create a classification technique that…
We present a study of the influence of galaxy mergers on star formation at 0.3<z<2.5. Major mergers are selected from the CANDELS/3D-HST catalog using a peak-finding algorithm. Mergers have projected galaxy nuclei separation of their…
We present the first measurement of the evolution of the galaxy group stellar mass function (GrSMF) to redshift z>~1 and low masses (M*>10^12 Msun). Our results are based on early data from the Carnegie-Spitzer-IMACS (CSI) Survey, utilizing…
We calculate the major pair fraction and derive the major merger fraction and rate for 82 massive ($M_{*}>10^{11}M_{\odot}$) galaxies at $1.7 < z < 3.0$ utilising deep HST NICMOS data taken in the GOODS North and South fields. For the first…
A critical issue in studying the evolution of galaxy clusters is to find ways that enable meaningful comparisons of clusters observed at different redshifts, as well as in various stages of their growth. Studies in the past have typically…
We present a statistical analysis of flybys of dark matter halos compared to mergers using cosmological $N$-body simulations. We mainly focus on gravitationally interacting target halos with mass of $10^{10.8}-10^{13.0}h^{-1}M_{\odot}$, and…
Hierarchical structure formation theory is based on the notion that mergers drive galaxy evolution, so a considerable framework of semi-analytic models and N-body simulations has been constructed to calculate how mergers transform a growing…
Comparing galaxies across redshifts at fixed cumulative number density is a popular way to estimate the evolution of specific galaxy populations. This method ignores scatter in mass accretion histories and galaxy-galaxy mergers, which can…
Minor merging has been postulated as the most likely evolutionary path to produce the increase in size and mass observed in the massive galaxies since z$\sim$2. In this Letter, we test directly this hypothesis comparing the population of…
Binary black hole mergers encode information about their environment and the astrophysical processes that led to their formation. Measuring the redshift dependence of their merger rate will help probe the formation and evolution of galaxies…
We use the HiZELS narrow-band H-alpha survey in combination with CANDELS, UKIDSS and WIRDS near-infrared imaging, to investigate the morphologies, merger rates and sizes of a sample of H-alpha emitting galaxies in the redshift range z=0.40…
Galaxy mergers are known to trigger bursts of central star formation, which should therefore lead to stellar mass growth in their inner regions. However, observational measurements of this `burst mass fraction' are scant. Here, we assemble…
We analyse the mass assembly of central galaxies in the EAGLE hydrodynamical simulations. We build merger trees to connect galaxies to their progenitors at different redshifts and characterize their assembly histories by focusing on the…
The star formation history of the universe shows strong evolution with cosmological epoch. Although we know mergers between galaxies can cause luminous bursts of star formation, the relative importance of such mergers to the global star…