The KBSS-KCWI Survey: The connection between extended Ly$\alpha$ halos and galaxy azimuthal angle at $z\sim 2-3$

TL;DR

This study analyzes the spatial and kinematic properties of extended Ly$ extalpha$ halos around $z extasciitilde 2-3$ galaxies, revealing that Ly$ extalpha$ scattering is predominantly isotropic and driven by outflows, with subtle azimuthal variations.

Contribution

First statistical analysis of kinematically-resolved, spatially-extended Ly$ extalpha$ emission around high-redshift galaxies using the KCWI, introducing cylindrically-projected 2D spectra to study azimuthal dependence.

Findings

Ly$ extalpha$ halos are symmetric along galaxy axes, indicating outflow-dominated scattering.

Weak azimuthal dependence of Ly$ extalpha$ emission observed in low escape fraction galaxies.

Resonant scattering signatures consistent with outflowing gas detected in the averaged spectra.

Abstract

We present the first statistical analysis of kinematically-resolved, spatially-extended Ly$\alpha$ emission around $z = 2-3$ galaxies in the Keck Baryonic Structure Survey (KBSS) using the Keck Cosmic Web Imager (KCWI). Our sample of 59 star-forming galaxies ($z_\mathrm{med} = 2.29$) comprises the subset with typical KCWI integration times of ~5 hours and with existing imaging data from the Hubble Space Telescope and/or adaptive optics-assisted integral field spectroscopy. The high resolution images were used to evaluate the azimuthal dependence of the diffuse Ly$\alpha$ emission with respect to the stellar continuum within projected galactocentric distances of $\lesssim 30$ proper kpc. We introduce cylindrically-projected 2D spectra (CP2D) that map the averaged Ly$\alpha$ spectral profile over a specified range of azimuthal angle, as a function of impact parameter around galaxies. The averaged CP2D spectrum of all galaxies shows clear signatures of Ly$\alpha$ resonant scattering by outflowing gas. We stacked the CP2D spectra of individual galaxies over ranges of azimuthal angle with respect to their major axes. The extended Ly$\alpha$ emission along the galaxy principal axes are statistically indistinguishable, with residual asymmetry of $\le$ 2% ($\sim 2 \sigma$) of the integrated Ly$\alpha$ emission. The symmetry implies that the Ly$\alpha$ scattering medium is dominated by outflows in all directions within 30 kpc. Meanwhile, we find that the blueshifted component of Ly$\alpha$ emission is marginally stronger along galaxy minor axes for galaxies with relatively weak Ly$\alpha$ emission. We speculate that this weak directional dependence of Ly$\alpha$ emission becomes discernible only when the Ly$\alpha$ escape fraction is low. These discoveries highlight the need for similar analyses in simulations with Ly$\alpha$ radiative transfer modeling.