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Lehmer, B.

Publications and source records attributed to Lehmer, B..

The Chandra Deep Field-South Survey: 7 MS source catalogs

We present X-ray source catalogs for the ≈7 Ms exposure of the Chandra Deep Field-South (CDF-S), which covers a total area of 484.2 arcmin{sup 2}. Utilizing wavdetect for initial source detection and ACIS Extract for photometric extraction and significance assessment, we create a main source catalog containing 1008 sources that are detected in up to three X-ray bands: 0.5–7.0 keV, 0.5–2.0 keV, and 2–7 keV. A supplementary source catalog is also provided, including 47 lower-significance sources that have bright (K{sub s}⩽23) near-infrared counterparts. We identify multiwavelength counterparts for 992 (98.4%) of the main-catalog sources, and we collect redshifts for 986 of these sources, including 653 spectroscopic redshifts and 333 photometric redshifts. Based on the X-ray and multiwavelength properties, we identify 711 active galactic nuclei (AGNs) from the main-catalog sources. Compared to the previous ≈4 Ms CDF-S catalogs, 291 of the main-catalog sources are new detections. We have achieved unprecedented X-ray sensitivity with average flux limits over the central ≈1 arcmin{sup 2} region of ≈1.9 × 10{sup −17}, 6.4 × 10{sup −18}, and 2.7 × 10{sup −17} erg cm{sup −2} s{sup −1} in the three X-ray bands, respectively. We provide cumulative number-count measurements observing, for the first time, that normal galaxies start to dominate the X-ray source population at the faintest 0.5–2.0 keV flux levels. The highest X-ray source density reaches ≈50,500 deg{sup −2}, and 47% ± 4% of these sources are AGNs (≈23,900 deg{sup −2}).

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

The Chandra Deep Field-South Survey: 7 Ms Source Catalogs

We present X-ray source catalogs for the approx. 7 Ms exposure of the Chandra Deep Field-South (CDF-S), which covers a total area of 484.2 arcmin2. Utilizing WAVDETECT for initial source detection and ACIS Extract for photometric extraction and significance assessment, we create a main source catalog containing 1008 sources that are detected in up to three X-ray bands: 0.5-7.0 keV, 0.5-2.0 keV, and 2-7 keV. A supplementary source catalog is also provided, including 47 lower-significance sources that have bright (Ks < or = 23) near-infrared counterparts. We identify multiwavelength counterparts for 992 (98.4%) of the main-catalog sources, and we collect redshifts for 986 of these sources, including 653 spectroscopic redshifts and 333 photometric redshifts. Based on the X-ray and multiwavelength properties, we identify 711 active galactic nuclei (AGNs) from the main-catalog sources. Compared to the previous approx. 4 Ms CDF-S catalogs, 291 of the main-catalog sources are new detections. We have achieved unprecedented X-ray sensitivity with average flux limits over the central approx. 1 arcmin2 region of 1.9 x 10(exp -17), 6.4 x 10(exp -18), and 2.7 x 10(exp -17) erg/sq cm/s in the three X-ray bands, respectively. We provide cumulative number-count measurements observing, for the first time, that normal galaxies start to dominate the X-ray source population at the faintest 0.5-2.0 keV flux levels. The highest X-ray source density reaches approx. 50,500/sq deg, and 47% +/- 4 of these sources are AGNs (approx. 23,900/sq deg).

cosmology: observations – diffuse radiation – ↗

A FOCUSED, HARD X-RAY LOOK AT ARP 299 WITH NuSTAR

We report on simultaneous observations of the local starburst system Arp 299 with NuSTAR and Chandra, which provides the first resolved images of this galaxy up to energies of ∼45 keV. Fitting the 3-40 keV spectrum reveals a column density of N {sub H} ∼ 4 × 10{sup 24} cm{sup –2}, characteristic of a Compton-thick active galactic nucleus (AGN), and a 10-30 keV luminosity of 1.2 × 10{sup 43} erg s{sup –1}. The hard X-rays detected by NuSTAR above 10 keV are centered on the western nucleus, Arp 299-B, which previous X-ray observations have shown to be the primary source of neutral Fe-K emission. Other X-ray sources, including Arp 299-A, the eastern nucleus also thought to harbor an AGN, as well as X-ray binaries, contribute ≲ 10% to the 10-20 keV emission from the Arp 299 system. The lack of significant emission above 10 keV other than that attributed to Arp 299-B suggests that: (1) any AGN in Arp 299-A must be heavily obscured (N {sub H} > 10{sup 24} cm{sup –2}) or have a much lower luminosity than Arp 299-B and (2) the extranuclear X-ray binaries have spectra that cut-off above ∼10 keV. Such soft spectra are characteristic of ultraluminous X-ray sources observed to date by NuSTAR.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

X-RAY BINARY EVOLUTION ACROSS COSMIC TIME

High-redshift galaxies permit the study of the formation and evolution of X-ray binary (XRB) populations on cosmological timescales, probing a wide range of metallicities and star formation rates (SFRs). In this paper, we present results from a large-scale population synthesis study that models the XRB populations from the first galaxies of the universe until today. We use as input to our modeling the Millennium II cosmological simulation and the updated semi-analytic galaxy catalog by Guo et al. to self-consistently account for the star formation history and metallicity evolution of the universe. Our modeling, which is constrained by the observed X-ray properties of local galaxies, gives predictions about the global scaling of emission from XRB populations with properties such as SFR and stellar mass, and the evolution of these relations with redshift. Our simulations show that the X-ray luminosity density (X-ray luminosity per unit volume) from XRBs in our universe today is dominated by low-mass XRBs, and it is only at z {approx}> 2.5 that high-mass XRBs become dominant. We also find that there is a delay of {approx}1.1 Gyr between the peak of X-ray emissivity from low-mass XRBs (at z {approx} 2.1) and the peak of SFR density (at z {approx} 3.1). The peak of the X-ray luminosity from high-mass XRBs (at z {approx} 3.9) happens {approx}0.8 Gyr before the peak of the SFR density, which is due to the metallicity evolution of the universe.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗