Unveiling the Cosmic Chemistry: Revisiting the Mass–Metallicity Relation with JWST/NIRSpec at 4 < z < 10
We present star formation rates (SFRs), the mass–metallicity relation (MZR), and the SFR-dependent MZR across redshifts 4–10 using 81 star-forming galaxies observed by the JWST NIRSpec employing both low-resolution PRISM and medium-resolution gratings, including galaxies from the JWST Advanced Deep...
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IOP Publishing
2025-01-01
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ad8f32 |
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| author | Arnab Sarkar Priyanka Chakraborty Mark Vogelsberger Michael McDonald Paul Torrey Alex M. Garcia Gourav Khullar Gary J. Ferland William Forman Scott Wolk Benjamin Schneider Mark Bautz Eric Miller Catherine Grant John ZuHone |
| author_facet | Arnab Sarkar Priyanka Chakraborty Mark Vogelsberger Michael McDonald Paul Torrey Alex M. Garcia Gourav Khullar Gary J. Ferland William Forman Scott Wolk Benjamin Schneider Mark Bautz Eric Miller Catherine Grant John ZuHone |
| author_sort | Arnab Sarkar |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | We present star formation rates (SFRs), the mass–metallicity relation (MZR), and the SFR-dependent MZR across redshifts 4–10 using 81 star-forming galaxies observed by the JWST NIRSpec employing both low-resolution PRISM and medium-resolution gratings, including galaxies from the JWST Advanced Deep Extragalactic Survey (JADES) GOODS-N and GOODS-S fields, the JWST-PRIMAL Legacy Survey, and additional galaxies from the literature in the A2744, SMACS-0723, RXJ2129, BDF, COSMOS, and MACS1149 fields. These galaxies span a 3 dex stellar mass range of 10 ^7 < M _* / M _⊙ < 10 ^10 , with an average SFR of 7.2 ± 1.2 M _⊙ yr ^−1 and an average metallicity of $12+\mathrm{log}({\rm{O}}/{\rm{H}})=7.91\pm 0.08$ . Our findings align with previous observations up to z = 8 for the MZR and indicate no deviation from the local Universe fundamental metallicity relation (FMR) up to this redshift. Beyond z = 8, we observe a significant deviation (∼0.27 dex) in FMR, consistent with recent JWST findings. We also integrate Cosmic Evolution Early Release Science (135 galaxies) and JADES (47 galaxies) samples with our data to study the metallicity evolution with redshift in a combined sample of 263 galaxies, revealing a decreasing metallicity trend with a slope of 0.067 ± 0.013, consistent with IllustrisTNG and EAGLE but contradicting the FIRE simulations. We introduce an empirical mass–metallicity–redshift relation: $12+{\rm{log}}({\rm{O}}/{\rm{H}})=6.29+0.237$ × $\mathrm{log}({M}_{* }/{M}_{\odot })-0.06\times (1+z)$ , which accurately reproduces the observed trends in metallicity with both redshift and stellar mass. This trend underscores the “Grand Challenge” in understanding the factors driving high-redshift galactic metallicity trends, such as inflow, outflow, and active galactic nucleus/stellar feedback—and emphasizes the need for further investigations with larger samples and enhanced simulations. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-74ace359c29b443d8a99a8ecefab3acf |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1538-4357 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | IOP Publishing |
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| series | The Astrophysical Journal |
| spelling | doaj-art-74ace359c29b443d8a99a8ecefab3acf2025-01-06T07:24:47ZengIOP PublishingThe Astrophysical Journal1538-43572025-01-01978213610.3847/1538-4357/ad8f32Unveiling the Cosmic Chemistry: Revisiting the Mass–Metallicity Relation with JWST/NIRSpec at 4 < z < 10Arnab Sarkar0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5222-1337Priyanka Chakraborty1https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4469-2518Mark Vogelsberger2https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8593-7692Michael McDonald3Paul Torrey4https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5653-0786Alex M. Garcia5https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8111-9884Gourav Khullar6https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3475-7648Gary J. Ferland7William Forman8Scott Wolk9Benjamin Schneider10Mark Bautz11https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1379-4482Eric Miller12https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3031-2326Catherine Grant13https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4737-1373John ZuHone14https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3175-2347Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology , 70 Vassar Street, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA ; arnabsar@mit.eduCenter for Astrophysics—Harvard & Smithsonian , 60 Garden Street, Cambridge, MA 02138, USAKavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology , 70 Vassar Street, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA ; arnabsar@mit.eduKavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology , 70 Vassar Street, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA ; arnabsar@mit.eduUniversity of Virginia , 530 McCormick Road, VA 22904, USAUniversity of Virginia , 530 McCormick Road, VA 22904, USAUniversity of Pittsburgh , Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USAUniversity of Kentucky , 506 Library Drive, Lexington, KY 40508, USACenter for Astrophysics—Harvard & Smithsonian , 60 Garden Street, Cambridge, MA 02138, USACenter for Astrophysics—Harvard & Smithsonian , 60 Garden Street, Cambridge, MA 02138, USAKavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology , 70 Vassar Street, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA ; arnabsar@mit.eduKavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology , 70 Vassar Street, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA ; arnabsar@mit.eduKavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology , 70 Vassar Street, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA ; arnabsar@mit.eduKavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology , 70 Vassar Street, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA ; arnabsar@mit.eduCenter for Astrophysics—Harvard & Smithsonian , 60 Garden Street, Cambridge, MA 02138, USAWe present star formation rates (SFRs), the mass–metallicity relation (MZR), and the SFR-dependent MZR across redshifts 4–10 using 81 star-forming galaxies observed by the JWST NIRSpec employing both low-resolution PRISM and medium-resolution gratings, including galaxies from the JWST Advanced Deep Extragalactic Survey (JADES) GOODS-N and GOODS-S fields, the JWST-PRIMAL Legacy Survey, and additional galaxies from the literature in the A2744, SMACS-0723, RXJ2129, BDF, COSMOS, and MACS1149 fields. These galaxies span a 3 dex stellar mass range of 10 ^7 < M _* / M _⊙ < 10 ^10 , with an average SFR of 7.2 ± 1.2 M _⊙ yr ^−1 and an average metallicity of $12+\mathrm{log}({\rm{O}}/{\rm{H}})=7.91\pm 0.08$ . Our findings align with previous observations up to z = 8 for the MZR and indicate no deviation from the local Universe fundamental metallicity relation (FMR) up to this redshift. Beyond z = 8, we observe a significant deviation (∼0.27 dex) in FMR, consistent with recent JWST findings. We also integrate Cosmic Evolution Early Release Science (135 galaxies) and JADES (47 galaxies) samples with our data to study the metallicity evolution with redshift in a combined sample of 263 galaxies, revealing a decreasing metallicity trend with a slope of 0.067 ± 0.013, consistent with IllustrisTNG and EAGLE but contradicting the FIRE simulations. We introduce an empirical mass–metallicity–redshift relation: $12+{\rm{log}}({\rm{O}}/{\rm{H}})=6.29+0.237$ × $\mathrm{log}({M}_{* }/{M}_{\odot })-0.06\times (1+z)$ , which accurately reproduces the observed trends in metallicity with both redshift and stellar mass. This trend underscores the “Grand Challenge” in understanding the factors driving high-redshift galactic metallicity trends, such as inflow, outflow, and active galactic nucleus/stellar feedback—and emphasizes the need for further investigations with larger samples and enhanced simulations.https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ad8f32James Webb Space Telescope |
| spellingShingle | Arnab Sarkar Priyanka Chakraborty Mark Vogelsberger Michael McDonald Paul Torrey Alex M. Garcia Gourav Khullar Gary J. Ferland William Forman Scott Wolk Benjamin Schneider Mark Bautz Eric Miller Catherine Grant John ZuHone Unveiling the Cosmic Chemistry: Revisiting the Mass–Metallicity Relation with JWST/NIRSpec at 4 < z < 10 The Astrophysical Journal James Webb Space Telescope |
| title | Unveiling the Cosmic Chemistry: Revisiting the Mass–Metallicity Relation with JWST/NIRSpec at 4 < z < 10 |
| title_full | Unveiling the Cosmic Chemistry: Revisiting the Mass–Metallicity Relation with JWST/NIRSpec at 4 < z < 10 |
| title_fullStr | Unveiling the Cosmic Chemistry: Revisiting the Mass–Metallicity Relation with JWST/NIRSpec at 4 < z < 10 |
| title_full_unstemmed | Unveiling the Cosmic Chemistry: Revisiting the Mass–Metallicity Relation with JWST/NIRSpec at 4 < z < 10 |
| title_short | Unveiling the Cosmic Chemistry: Revisiting the Mass–Metallicity Relation with JWST/NIRSpec at 4 < z < 10 |
| title_sort | unveiling the cosmic chemistry revisiting the mass metallicity relation with jwst nirspec at 4 z 10 |
| topic | James Webb Space Telescope |
| url | https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ad8f32 |
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