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Candidate 𝑧 ∼ 2.5 Lyman Continuum Sources in the GOODS-S Field

Published onJun 01, 2020
Candidate 𝑧 ∼ 2.5 Lyman Continuum Sources in the GOODS-S Field

We conducted a direct search for candidate Lyman continuum (LyC) emitting galaxies at z ~ 2.5–3 in the GOODS-S field using deep F275W imaging from the HDUV survey with new and archival optical spectra. By selecting spectroscopically-identified sources at z > 2.35 (where the bandpass probes the rest-frame LyC only) that remain detectable at the 2.5-Οƒ level in F275W, we identify seven that merit further investigation as possible LyC-leakers. However, several sources' spectra show emission lines from intermediate-z galaxies along with those from the high-z source, indicating contamination from line-of-sight blends. We also perform a stacking analysis on 2.35 < z < 3.1 sources with UV coverage in the GOODS-S and GOODS-N (separately and together) and find that, despite the contributions from candidate emitters, the average F275W flux of this sample is extremely faint. The combined LyC emissivity of our candidates falls well below the ionizing output of AGN at similar redshifts, accounting for less than 20% of the observed metagalactic ionizing background.

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