Related papers: What Shapes the Luminosity Function of Galaxies?
The optical luminosity function is a fundamental characterization of the galaxy population. A combination of earlier redshift surveys with two new surveys allows the first accurate determination of the evolution of the luminosity function…
The (re)ionisation of hydrogen in the early universe has a profound effect on the formation of the first galaxies: by raising the gas temperature and pressure, it prevents gas from cooling into small haloes thus affecting the abundance of…
We develop a coupled model for the evolution of the global properties of the intergalactic medium (IGM) and the formation of galaxies, in the presence of a photoionizing background due to stars and quasars. We use this model to predict the…
Eliptical and bulge galaxies share a tight correlation of velocity distribution to both luminosity and black hole mass. There are similar orbital speeds for all galaxies of a given luminosity including dark matter (DM) at large radii. The…
Galaxy growth depends critically on the interplay between radiative cooling of cosmic gas and the resulting energetic feedback that cooling triggers. This interplay has proven exceedingly difficult to model, even with large supercomputer…
We study lens statistics in flat, low-density universes with different equations of state $w=p_Q/\rho_Q$ for the dark energy component. Dark energy modifies the distance-redshift relation and the mass function of dark matter halos leading…
We explore the galaxy formation physics governing the low mass end of the HI mass function in the local Universe. Specifically, we predict the effects on the HI mass function of varying i) the strength of photoionisation feedback and the…
We present an overview of some of the issues surrounding current models of galaxy formation, highlighting recent insights obtained from cosmological hydrodynamic simulations. Detailed examination of gas accretion processes show a hot mode…
Observationally, constraining the baryonic cycle within massive galaxies has proven to be quite difficult. In particular, the role of black hole feedback in regulating star formation, a key process in our theoretical understanding of galaxy…
Metallicity is a fundamental physical property that strongly constrains galaxy formation and evolution. The formation of stars in galaxies is suppressed by the energy released from supernova explosions and can be enhanced by metal…
Cosmic structure originated from minute density perturbations in an almost homogeneous universe. The first stars are believed to be very massive and luminous, providing the first ionizing radiation and heavy elements to the universe and…
Dark matter cores within galaxy haloes can be formed by energy feedback from star forming regions: an energy balance suggests that the maximum core formation efficiency arises in galaxies with M$_{\star}\sim10^{8.5}$M$_{\odot}$. We show…
We study the evolution of global shapes of galaxies using cosmological simulations. The shapes refer to the components of dark matter (DM), stars and gas at the stellar half-mass radius. Most galaxies undergo a characteristic compaction…
We use the conditional luminosity function (CLF), which gives the number of galaxies with luminosities in the range [L, L+dL] that reside in a halo of mass M, to link the distribution of galaxies to that of dark matter haloes. We seek the…
We use N-body/gasdynamical LambdaCDM cosmological simulations to examine the effect of the assembly of a central galaxy on the shape and mass profile of its dark halo. Two series of simulations are compared; one that follows only the…
I review the outstanding problems in galaxy formation theory, and the role of feedback in resolving them. I address the efficiency of star formation, the galactic star formation rate, and the roles of supernovae and supermassive black…
A standard paradigm is now available for the recent evolution (z < 10) of structure on galactic and larger scales. Most of the matter is assumed to be dark and dissipationless and to cluster hierarchically from gaussian initial conditions.…
We explore the shape of the galaxy luminosity function (LF) in groups of different mass by creating composite LFs over large numbers of groups. Following previous work using total group luminosity as the mass indicator, here we split our…
Any successful model of galaxy formation needs to explain the low rate of star formation in the small progenitors of today's galaxies. This inefficiency is necessary for reproducing the low stellar-to-virial mass fractions, suggested by…
[Abridged] Over the past two decades observations and theoretical simulations have established a global frame-work of galaxy formation and evolution in the young Universe. Galaxies formed as baryonic gas cooled at the centres of collapsing…