Adding Context to JWST Surveys with Current and Future 21cm Radio Observations

TL;DR

This paper presents a method to connect radio and infrared observations of the Epoch of Reionization, enabling better contextual understanding of galaxy formation and ionization states, thereby enhancing the scientific value of JWST data.

Contribution

The authors develop a novel approach to infer ionized regions from radio power spectra, bridging the resolution gap between radio and infrared surveys during reionization.

Findings

Method effectively distinguishes ionized from neutral regions using power spectrum data.

Enhances interpretation of JWST galaxy observations with ionization context.

Potential to improve the scientific yield of combined radio and infrared surveys.

Abstract

Infrared and radio observations of the Epoch of Reionization promise to revolutionize our understanding of the cosmic dawn, and major efforts with the JWST, MWA and HERA are underway. While measurements of the ionizing sources with infrared telescopes and the effect of these sources on the intergalactic medium with radio telescopes \emph{should} be complementary, to date the wildly disparate angular resolutions and survey speeds have made connecting proposed observations difficult. In this paper we develop a method to bridge the gap between radio and infrared studies. While the radio images may not have the sensitivity and resolution to identify individual bubbles with high fidelity, by leveraging knowledge of the measured power spectrum we are able to separate regions that are likely ionized from largely neutral, providing context for the JWST observations of galaxy counts and properties in each. By providing the ionization context for infrared galaxy observations, this method can significantly enhance the science returns of JWST and other infrared observations.