We investigate the absorption signals of a strong diffuse interstellar band, DIBλ4430, in the circumgalactic medium (CGM) traced by MgII absorption lines. To this end, we make use of approximately 60,000 MgII absorption line spectra within 0.4<z<1.0 compiled from the Sloan Digital Sky Surveys and obtain composite spectra with uncertainties for absorption line measurements being a few mA˚. By using MgII absorption strength and dust reddening relation from the literature, we measure the DIBλ4430 absorption strength as a function of E(B−V) in the CGM, and compare the Milky Way DIBλ4430 - E(B−V) relation extrapolated down to the CGM E(B−V) region. Our results show no detectable signals of DIBλ4430 across the entire E(B−V) range in the CGM traced by MgII absorption lines. This lack of detection of DIBλ4430 in the CGM is inconsistent with the Milky Way signals by ∼5σ, indicating that the factors associated with different environments affect the abundance of the DIBλ4430 carrier.
@article{arxiv.2501.07082,
title = {A Deep Search for a Strong Diffuse Interstellar Band in the Circumgalactic Medium},
author = {Chih-Yuan Chang and Ting-Wen Lan},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2501.07082},
year = {2025}
}
Comments
7 pages, 2 figures, comments and suggestions are welcome