RIDEN pilot survey: broad-band selection of candidate quasars with extended Lyman-$\alpha$ nebulae using CLAUDS-HSC-SSP-DUNES$^2$ joint data

TL;DR

This study used broad-band imaging data from multiple surveys to identify candidate quasar nebulae with extended Ly$ extalpha$ emission, assessing their morphology and environmental dependence, and demonstrating the potential of upcoming Rubin LSST data for large-scale discoveries.

Contribution

First broad-band selection of candidate quasar nebulae with extended Ly$ extalpha$ emission using joint multi-survey data, providing insights into their morphology and environment.

Findings

No significant morphological difference between two redshift intervals.

No systematic environmental difference among different quasar samples.

Potential for large-scale discovery of Ly$ extalpha$ nebulae with Rubin LSST.

Abstract

The Vera C. Rubin Observatory will conduct the Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST), delivering deep, multi-band ($ugrizy$) imaging data across 18,000 square degrees over the next decade. Before this ultra-wide-field survey, we constructed a broad-band Ly$\alpha$ imaging toward 483 SDSS/BOSS quasars at $z=$ 1.9-3.0, using deep, wide-field ultraviolet to near-infrared ($u$-to-$K$) data from the Hyper Suprime-Cam Subaru Strategic Survey (HSC-SSP), the CFHT Large Area U-band Deep Survey (CLAUDS), the Deep UKIRT Near-Infrared Steward Survey (DUNES$^2$), and additional public data covering 13 square degrees. Our broad-band selection allowed us to select 24 candidate quasar nebulae that exhibit $u$ or $g$ band excess over 50-170 kpc, some of which exhibit asymmetrical extended features similar to those seen in previously discovered giant nebulae. We then investigated whether the Ly$\alpha$ morphology of quasar nebulae differs between two redshift intervals, $z=$ 1.9-2.3 and $z=$ 2.3-3.0, and examined environmental dependence based on a control sample. Comparison results show no significant difference in asymmetry within Ly$\alpha$ nebulae between the two redshift intervals. Furthermore, we found no systematic differences in overdensities around the complete quasar samples, quasars with large Ly$\alpha$ nebulae, and control samples, while the most extended nebula appears to be located in the high-density region. Further verification analyses are required since the current dataset lacks spectroscopic confirmation for both quasar nebulae and their surrounding neighbours. Nevertheless, the results demonstrate the great potential of the Rubin LSST to discover giant Ly$\alpha$ nebulae on an unprecedented scale.