Bright [C II] 158 μm Emission in a Quasar Host Galaxy at z = 6.54
Date Issued
2015
Author(s)
Abstract
The [C ii] 158 μm fine-structure line is known to trace regions of active star formation and is the main coolant of the cold, neutral atomic medium. In this Letter, we report a strong detection of the [C ii] line in the host galaxy of the brightest quasar known at z\gt 6.5, the Pan-STARRS1 selected quasar PSO J036.5078+03.0498 (hereafter P036+03), using the IRAM NOEMA millimeter interferometer. Its [C ii] and total far-infrared luminosities are (5.8+/- 0.7)× {{10}9} {{L}☉ } and (7.6+/- 1.5)× {{10}12} {{L}☉ }, respectively. This results in an {{L}[C II]}/{{L}TIR} ratio of ∼ 0.8× {{10}-3}, which is at the high end of those found for active galaxies, though it is lower than the average found in typical main-sequence galaxies at z∼ 0. We also report a tentative additional line that we identify as a blended emission from the {{3}22}-{{3}13} and {{5}23}-{{4}32} H2O transitions. If confirmed, this would be the most distant detection of water emission to date. P036+03 rivals the current prototypical luminous J1148+5251 quasar at z = 6.42, in both rest-frame UV and [C ii] luminosities. Given its brightness and because it is visible from both hemispheres (unlike J1148+5251), P036+03 has the potential of becoming an important laboratory for the study of star formation and of the interstellar medium only ∼800 Myr after the Big Bang.
Based on observations carried out under project number E14AG with the IRAM NOEMA Interferometer. IRAM is supported by INSU/CNRS (France), MPG (Germany), and IGN (Spain).
Issn Identifier
2041-8205
Ads BibCode
2015ApJ...805L...8B
Rights
open.access
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