Related papers: Radiative Transfer in a Clumpy Universe: II. The U…
We estimate the He II to H I column density ratio, \eta = N(He II)/N(H I), in the intergalactic medium towards the high redshift (z_{em} = 2.885) bright quasar QSO HE 2347-4342 using Voigt-profile fitting of the H I transitions in the Lyman…
Lyman-limit absorption systems can play many important roles during and after cosmological reionization. Unfortunately, due to the prohibitively large dynamic range required, it is impossible to self-consistently include these systems in…
We present the Technicolor Dawn simulations, a suite of cosmological radiation-hydrodynamic simulations of the first 1.2 billion years. By modeling a spatially-inhomogeneous UVB on-the-fly with 24 frequencies and resolving dark matter halos…
We study the proximity effect in the Ly-a forest around high redshift quasars as a function of redshift and environment employing a set of 3D radiative transfer simulations. The analysis is based on dark matter only simulations at redshifts…
The history of the transition from a neutral intergalactic medium to one that is almost fully ionized can reveal the character of cosmological ionizing sources. In this talk I will discuss the implications for rival reionization scenarios…
The amplitude of the metagalactic ultraviolet background (UVB) at large-scales is impacted by two factors. First, it naturally attenuates at scales larger than mean-free-path of UVB photons due to the absorption by neutral intergalactic…
We present an analysis combining the simultaneous measurement of intergalactic absorption by hydrogen (H I), helium (He II) and oxygen (O VI) in UV and optical quasar spectra. The combination of the H I and He II Lyman-alpha forests through…
Deep surveys with the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) have revealed an emergent population of moderate-luminosity, broad-line active galactic nuclei (AGNs) at 4< z< 14 powered by accretion onto early massive black holes. The high number…
We present the first results from a survey of the relative spatial distributions of galaxies, intergalactic neutral hydrogen, and intergalactic metals at high redshift. We obtained high-resolution spectra of 8 bright QSOs at 3.1<z<4.1 and…
We study the reionization scenario in which ionizing UV photons emitted from decaying particle, in addition to usual contributions from stars and quasars, ionize the universe. It is found that the scenario is consistent with both the first…
A homogeneous sample of 99 moderate resolution QSO spectra at z > 1.7 were presented in Paper I, including 39 previously unpublished spectra from the Multiple Mirror Telescope. The statistics of the Lyman alpha forest were discussed. In…
The timing and duration of the reionization epoch is crucial to the emergence and evolution of structure in the universe. The relative roles that star-forming galaxies, active galactic nuclei and quasars play in contributing to the…
Recent results have suggested that active galactic nuclei (AGN) could provide enough photons to reionise the Universe. We assess the viability of this scenario using a semi-numerical framework for modeling reionisation, to which we add a…
High-redshift quasars (z >~ 6) drive ionization fronts into the intergalactic medium (IGM). If the thickness of the front can be measured, it can provide a novel constraint on the ionizing spectral energy distribution (SED). Here we follow…
The epoch of reionization (6 < z < 10) marks the period in our universe when the first large galaxies grew to fruition, and began to affect the universe around them. Massive stars, and potentially accreting supermassive black holes, filled…
In order to assess the contribution of Lyman break galaxies (LBGs) and Lyman alpha emitters (LAEs) at redshifts 3<z<7 to the ionization of intergalactic medium (IGM), we investigate the escape fractions of ionizing photons from…
We combine a cosmological reionization simulation with box size of 100Mpc/h on a side and a Monte Carlo Lyman-alpha (Lya) radiative transfer code to model Lyman Alpha Emitters (LAEs) at z~5.7. The model introduces Lya radiative transfer as…
Hydrogen in the Universe was (re)ionised between redshifts $z \approx 10$ and $z \approx 6$. The nature of the sources of the ionising radiation is hotly debated, with faint galaxies below current detection limits regarded as prime…
We study the ionization and thermal evolution of the intergalactic medium during the epoch of \heii reionization by means of radiation hydrodynamical cosmological simulations. We post-process baryonic density fields from a standard…
Diffuse interstellar clouds show large abundances of H_3^+ which can be maintained only by a high ionization rate of H_2. Cosmic rays are the dominant ionization mechanism in this environment, so the large ionization rate implies a high…