rdf-syntax-grammar
mods:
  schema location: http://www.loc.gov/mods/v3 http://www.loc.gov/standards/mods/v3/mods-3-2.xsd
  title info:
    non sort: The
    title: Luminous Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon Emission Features
    sub title: Applications to High Redshift Galaxies and Active Galactic Nuclei
  name:
    name part: Shipley, Heath Vernon
    role:
      role term: creator
    role:
      role term: author.
  name:
    name part: Papovich, Casey J.
    role:
      role term: thesis advisor.
  name:
    name part: Texas A & M University
    role:
      role term: degree granting institution.
  type of resource: text
  genre: bibliography
  origin info:
    place:
      place term: txu
    date issued: 2015
    issuance: monographic
  language:
    language term: eng
  physical description:
    form: remote
    extent: 1 online resource.
  abstract: The co-evolution of star-formation and supermassive black hole (SMBH) accretion in galaxies is one of the key problems in galaxy formation theory. Understanding the formation of galaxies, and their subsequent evolution, will be coupled to intensive study of the evolution of SMBHs. This thesis focuses on studying diagnostics of star-formation and SMBH accretion to develop tools to study this co-evolution. Chapter 2 consists of using mid-infrared (mid-IR) spectroscopy from the Spitzer Infrared Spectrograph (IRS) to study the nature of star-formation and SMBH accretion. The mid-IR spectra cover wavelengths 5-38[mu]m, spanning the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) features and important atomic diagnostic lines. We divide our sample into a subsample of galaxies with Spitzer IRAC colors indicative of warm dust heated by an AGN (IRAGN) and those galaxies whose colors indicate star-formation processes (non-IRAGN). In both the IRAGN and star-forming samples, the luminosity in the PAH features correlates strongly with [Ne II][gamma]12.8[mu]m emission line, from which we conclude that the PAH luminosity directly traces the instantaneous star-formation rate (SFR) in both the IRAGN and star-forming galaxies. There is no measurable difference between the PAH luminosity ratios of L11:3/L7:7 and L6:2/L7:7 for the IRAGN and non-IRAGN, suggesting that AGN do not significantly excite or destroy PAH molecules on galaxy-wide scales. In chapter 3, I calibrate the PAH luminosity as a SFR indicator. We provide a new robust SFR calibration using the luminosity emitted from PAH molecules at 6.2[mu]m, 7.7[mu]m and 11.3[mu]m. The PAH features emit strongly in the mid-IR mitigating dust extinction, containing on average 5 - 10% of the total IR luminosity in galaxies. We use mid-IR spectroscopy from the Spitzer/IRS, and data covering other SFR indicators (H[alpha] emission and rest-frame 24[mu]m continuum emission). The PAH luminosity correlates linearly with the SFR as measured by the H[alp…
  note: by Heath Vernon Shipley.
  note: "Major Subject: Physics & Astronomy"
  note: Includes vita.
  note: Doctor of Philosophy Texas A & M University 2015 http://hdl.handle.net/1969.1/155693
  note: Includes bibliographical references.
  note: Text (Dissertation)
  subject:
    topic: Major Physics & Astronomy
  subject:
    topic: Galaxies: active
  subject:
    topic: Infrared: galaxies
  subject:
    topic: Galaxies: evolution
  subject:
    topic: Galaxies: high-redshift
  identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/1969.1/155693
  record info:
    record content source: TXA
    record creation date: 161109
    record change date: 20170926150547.0
    record identifier: in00003713722
    language of cataloging:
      language term: eng