Total mass density slopes of early-type galaxies using Jeans dynamical modelling at redshifts $0.29 < z < 0.55$

TL;DR

This study measures the total mass density slopes of early-type galaxies at intermediate redshifts using Jeans dynamical modelling, finding no significant evolution over the last 4-6 billion years, supporting dry merger evolution.

Contribution

It provides observational evidence of the total mass density slopes at $0.29 < z < 0.55$ using Jeans dynamical models, addressing discrepancies between simulations and lensing observations.

Findings

Median density slope $ ext{-2.11}$ consistent with local universe studies.

No significant evolution of density slopes over 4-6 Gyrs.

Supports dry merging as the main evolutionary process.

Abstract

The change of the total mass density slope, $\gamma$, of early-type galaxies through cosmic time is a probe of evolutionary pathways. Hydrodynamical cosmological simulations show that at high redshifts density profiles of early-type galaxies were on average steep ($\gamma \sim -3$). As redshift approaches zero, gas-poor mergers progressively cause the total mass density slope to approach the `isothermal' slope of $\gamma \sim -2$. Simulations therefore predict steep density slopes at high redshifts, with little to no evolution in density slopes below $z \sim 1$. Gravitational lensing results in the same redshift range find the opposite, namely a significant trend of shallow density slopes at high redshifts, becoming steeper as redshift approaches zero. Gravitational lensing results indicate a different evolutionary mechanism for early-type galaxies than dry merging, such as continued gas accretion or off-axis mergers. At redshift zero, isothermal solutions are obtained by both simulations and dynamical modelling. This work applies the Jeans dynamical modelling technique to observations of galaxies at intermediate redshifts ($0.29 < z < 0.55 $) in order to derive density slopes to address the tension between observations and simulations. We combine two-dimensional kinematic fields from MUSE data with Hubble Space Telescope photometry. The density slopes of 90 early-type galaxies from the Frontier Fields project are presented. The total sample has a median of ${\gamma = -2.11 \pm 0.03}$ (standard error), in agreement with dynamical modelling studies at redshift zero. The lack of evolution in total density slopes in the past 4-6 Gyrs supports a dry merging model for early-type galaxy evolution.