Tracing Quenching in Nearby Galaxies Through Inner Surface Mass Density and Cold Gas Content

TL;DR

This study investigates how the inner surface mass density relates to cold gas content and AGN activity in nearby galaxies, revealing that bulge growth correlates more strongly with molecular gas depletion and AGN feedback.

Contribution

It demonstrates the relationship between Sigma1, delSigma1, cold gas fractions, and AGN activity, highlighting the role of molecular gas depletion in galaxy quenching.

Findings

fH2 declines sharply above delSigma1=0

AGN activity increases with delSigma1

Molecular gas depletion links to bulge growth and quenching

Abstract

The inner stellar mass surface density within 1 kpc, Sigma1, has emerged as a suitable proxy for bulge growth and galaxy quenching. However, the dependence of cold gas content on Sigma1 has not been thoroughly explored. In this paper, we examine the relationship between Sigma1, as well as the mass-relative parameter delSigma1, and the atomic (fHI) and molecular (fH2) cold gas fractions in massive, nearby galaxies. We utilize a sample of 341 galaxies with HI data and 201 galaxies with H2 data from the xGASS and xCOLDGASS surveys, spanning 0.02 <= z <= 0.05 and a stellar mass range of 10^10 <= M_*/M_odot <= 10^11.5. While we observe that a decline in both fHI and fH2 is associated with increasing Sigma1, we find that fH2 shows a sharper decline above a threshold value of delSigma1 = 0. In addition, the fraction of galaxies with AGN activity (Seyferts and LINERs) increases with delSigma1, with the greatest increase occurring between 0 <= delSigma1 <= 0.2 dex. We propose an evolutionary track in the plane of fH2-delSigma1, whereby molecular gas depletion at fixed mass coincides with a rise in AGN activity. Our results suggest that central bulge growth is more tightly coupled to the depletion of molecular gas rather than atomic gas, with AGN feedback possibly contributing to this process. Our work highlights the utility of Sigma1 and delSigma1 as tracers of quenching in massive galaxies.