Radio-Loud QSOs and Sub-Millimeter Galaxies: Space Distributions

TL;DR

This paper explores the potential evolutionary link between radio-loud QSOs and sub-millimeter galaxies by analyzing their space distributions, cosmic downsizing, and redshift cutoffs, suggesting a possible sequential development in galaxy evolution.

Contribution

It provides parallel analyses of space densities for RQSOs and SMGs, highlighting coincident epochs that support a proposed galaxy evolution sequence.

Findings

Both RQSOs and SMGs show cosmic downsizing.

Both populations exhibit a redshift cutoff.

The epochs of their creation are closely aligned.

Abstract

A picture has emerged connecting QSOs with Sub-Millimetre Galaxies (SMGs) through an evolutionary sequence in which forming galaxies are initially FIR-luminous but X-ray weak, similar to known SMGs. As the black hole and spheroid grow with time, the central QSO becomes powerful enough to terminate star formation and eject much of the fuel supply. The unobscured QSO activity subsequently declines to leave a quiescent spheroidal galaxy. Here I describe parallel investigations of space density, one for a sample of radio-loud QSOs (RQSOs), and a second for SMGs. Each class shows both cosmic down-sizing and a redshift cutoff. The coincidence in apparent epoch of creation is marked; if it does not prove a causal connection, it is at least circumstantial evidence that the foregoing sequence is correct.