Related papers: Probing reionization with Lyman-alpha emission lin…
We present measurements of the mean and scatter of the IGM Lyman-{\alpha} opacity at 4.9 < z < 6.1 along the lines of sight of 62 quasars at z > 5.7, the largest sample assembled at these redshifts to date by a factor of two. The sample…
The sky-averaged (global) 21-cm signal is a powerful probe of the intergalactic medium (IGM) prior to the completion of reionization. However, it has so far been unclear that even in the best case scenario, in which the signal is accurately…
Recent theoretical work has suggested that Lyman-alpha nebulae could be substantially polarized in the Lyman-alpha emission line, depending on the geometry, kinematics, and powering mechanism at work. Polarization observations can therefore…
Long troughs observed in the $z > 5.5$ Ly$\alpha$ and Ly$\beta$ forests are thought to be caused by the last remaining neutral patches during the end phases of reionization -- termed neutral islands. If this is true, then the longest…
The intergalactic medium (IGM) prior to the epoch of reionization consists mostly of neutral hydrogen gas. Ly-alpha photons produced by early stars resonantly scatter off hydrogen atoms, causing energy exchange between the radiation field…
Recent observations from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) have revealed proximate damped Lyman-$\alpha$ systems (PDLAs) in the foreground of high redshift galaxies ($z \gt 5$), which have been interpreted as neutral circumgalactic…
We present a study on stellar properties of Lyman-alpha (Ly$\alpha$) emitters at 5 $< z <$ 8.2. We use 247 photometrically-selected, lensed, high-redshift, low luminosity galaxy candidates with spectroscopic follow-up. Of these, 38 are…
I provide an overview about star-forming galaxies at high redshift and their physical properties. Starting from the populations of Ly-$\alpha$ emitters and Lyman break galaxies, I summarize their common features and distinction. Then I…
We compute the escape of ionizing radiation from galaxies in the redshift interval z=4-10, i.e., during and after the epoch of reionization, using a high-resolution set of galaxies, formed in fully cosmological simulations. The simulations…
Lyman-alpha forest absorption spectra towards quasars at z ~ 6 show regions of enhanced transmission close to their source. Several authors have argued that the apparently small sizes of these regions indicate that quasar ionization fronts…
Before reionization, the intergalactic medium (IGM) may have been sufficiently cold for low-mass "minihalos" to condense out of the gas and subsequently affect reionization. Previous work has shown that minihalos generate reasonably large…
We present the results of the observations of the Ly\alpha\ line profiles of 91 emission-line galaxies at z=3.1 with the spectral resolution of \lambda/\delta\lambda (FWHM) = 1700, or 180 km/s. A significant fraction, ~50% of the observed…
Estimates of the metagalactic hydrogen ionization rate from the Lyman-alpha forest opacity in QSO absorption spectra depend on the complex density distribution of neutral hydrogen along the line-of-sight. We use a large suite of high…
The fluctuations in the emission of redshifted 21cm photons from neutral inter-galactic hydrogen will provide an unprecedented probe of the reionization era. Conventional wisdom assumes that this 21cm signal disappears as soon as…
Spectroscopic confirmation of galaxies at z~7 and above has been extremely difficult, owing to a drop in intensity of Ly-alpha emission in comparison with samples at z~6. This crucial finding could potentially signal the ending of cosmic…
Recent work suggests that strong emission line, star-forming galaxies may be significant Lyman Continuum leakers. We combine archival HST broadband ultraviolet and optical imaging (F275W and F606W, respectively) with emission line catalogs…
We develop a new method to determine the distance between a high-redshift galaxy and a foreground screen of atomic hydrogen. In a partially neutral universe, and assuming spherical symmetry, this equates to the radius of a ionized 'bubble'…
We explore molecular cloud properties and the physics of CO transition lines in z >~ 6 Lyman-break galaxies and predict their CO fluxes using an analytic formalism built from global models of star formation in high-redshift galaxies that…
Recent observations of interplanetary medium (IPM) atomic hydrogen Lyman-{\alpha} (Ly{\alpha}) emission in the outer solar system, made with the Alice ultraviolet spectrograph on New Horizons (NH), are presented. The observations include…
The reionization of hydrogen is closely linked to the first structures in the universe, so understanding the timeline of reionization promises to shed light on the nature of these early objects. In particular, transmission of Lyman alpha…