Spatial variations in aromatic hydrocarbon emission in a dust-rich galaxy

Justin S. Spilker (), Kedar A. Phadke, Manuel Aravena, Melanie Archipley, Matthew B. Bayliss, Jack E. Birkin, Matthieu Béthermin, James Burgoyne, Jared Cathey, Scott C. Chapman, Håkon Dahle, Anthony H. Gonzalez, Gayathri Gururajan, Christopher C. Hayward, Yashar D. Hezaveh, Ryley Hill, Taylor A. Hutchison, Keunho J. Kim, Seonwoo Kim, David Law, Ronan Legin, Matthew A. Malkan, Daniel P. Marrone, Eric J. Murphy, Desika Narayanan, Alex Navarre, Grace M. Olivier, Jeffrey A. Rich, Jane R. Rigby, Cassie Reuter, James E. Rhoads, Keren Sharon, J. D. T. Smith, Manuel Solimano, Nikolaus Sulzenauer, Joaquin D. Vieira, David Vizgan, Axel Weiß and Katherine E. Whitaker
Additional contact information
Justin S. Spilker: Texas A&M University
Kedar A. Phadke: University of Illinois
Manuel Aravena: Universidad Diego Portales
Melanie Archipley: University of Illinois
Matthew B. Bayliss: University of Cincinnati
Jack E. Birkin: Texas A&M University
Matthieu Béthermin: Aix Marseille Univ., CNRS, CNES, LAM
James Burgoyne: University of British Columbia
Jared Cathey: University of Florida
Scott C. Chapman: University of British Columbia
Håkon Dahle: University of Oslo
Anthony H. Gonzalez: University of Florida
Gayathri Gururajan: Aix Marseille Univ., CNRS, CNES, LAM
Christopher C. Hayward: Flatiron Institute
Yashar D. Hezaveh: Flatiron Institute
Ryley Hill: University of British Columbia
Taylor A. Hutchison: Observational Cosmology Lab, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
Keunho J. Kim: University of Cincinnati
Seonwoo Kim: University of Illinois
David Law: Space Telescope Science Institute
Ronan Legin: Flatiron Institute
Matthew A. Malkan: University of California
Daniel P. Marrone: University of Arizona
Eric J. Murphy: National Radio Astronomy Observatory
Desika Narayanan: University of Florida
Alex Navarre: University of Cincinnati
Grace M. Olivier: Texas A&M University
Jeffrey A. Rich: The Observatories of the Carnegie Institution for Science
Jane R. Rigby: Observational Cosmology Lab, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
Cassie Reuter: University of Illinois
James E. Rhoads: Observational Cosmology Lab, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
Keren Sharon: University of Michigan
J. D. T. Smith: University of Toledo
Manuel Solimano: Universidad Diego Portales
Nikolaus Sulzenauer: Max-Planck-Institut für Radioastronomie
Joaquin D. Vieira: University of Illinois
David Vizgan: University of Illinois
Axel Weiß: Max-Planck-Institut für Radioastronomie
Katherine E. Whitaker: Technical University of Denmark

Nature, 2023, vol. 618, issue 7966, 708-711

Abstract: Abstract Dust grains absorb half of the radiation emitted by stars throughout the history of the universe, re-emitting this energy at infrared wavelengths1–3. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are large organic molecules that trace millimetre-size dust grains and regulate the cooling of interstellar gas within galaxies4,5. Observations of PAH features in very distant galaxies have been difficult owing to the limited sensitivity and wavelength coverage of previous infrared telescopes6,7. Here we present James Webb Space Telescope observations that detect the 3.3 μm PAH feature in a galaxy observed less than 1.5 billion years after the Big Bang. The high equivalent width of the PAH feature indicates that star formation, rather than black hole accretion, dominates infrared emission throughout the galaxy. The light from PAH molecules, hot dust and large dust grains and stars are spatially distinct from one another, leading to order-of-magnitude variations in PAH equivalent width and ratio of PAH to total infrared luminosity across the galaxy. The spatial variations we observe suggest either a physical offset between PAHs and large dust grains or wide variations in the local ultraviolet radiation field. Our observations demonstrate that differences in emission from PAH molecules and large dust grains are a complex result of localized processes within early galaxies.

Date: 2023
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DOI: 10.1038/s41586-023-05998-6

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