Reconstructing the galaxy density field with photometric redshifts - II. Environment-dependent galaxy evolution since z ≃ 3

Abstract

Although extensively investigated, the role of the environment in galaxy formation is still not well understood. In this context, the galaxy stellar mass function (GSMF) is a powerful tool to understand how environment relates to galaxy mass assembly and the quenching of star formation. In this work, we make use of the high-precision photometric redshifts of the UltraVISTA Survey to study the GSMF in different environments up to z ∼ 3, on physical scales from 0.3 to 2 Mpc, down to masses of M ∼ 10<SUP>10</SUP> M<SUB>☉</SUB>. We witness the appearance of environmental signatures for both quiescent and star-forming galaxies. We find that the shape of the GSMF of quiescent galaxies is different in high- and low-density environments up to z ∼ 2 with the high-mass end (M ≳ 10<SUP>11</SUP> M<SUB>☉</SUB>) being enhanced in high-density environments. On the contrary, for star-forming galaxies, a difference between the GSMF in high- and low-density environments is present for masses M ≲ 10<SUP>11</SUP> M<SUB>☉</SUB>. Star-forming galaxies in this mass range appear to be more frequent in low-density environments up to z < 1.5. Differences in the shape of the GSMF are not visible anymore at z > 2. Our results, in terms of general trends in the shape of the GSMF, are in agreement with a scenario in which galaxies are quenched when they enter hot gas-dominated massive haloes that are preferentially in high-density environments.