Work

Luminosity Functions From Photometric Redshifts. I. Techniques

Year: 1996

Type: article

Abstract: fundamental field in observational cosmology. In this paper we propose a cost effective way of measuring galaxy luminosity functions at faint magnitudes. Our technique employs the use of galaxy redshifts estimated from their multicolor photometry Connolly et al. [AJ, 110, 2655 (1995)]. Associated with the redshift estimate is a well defined error distribution. We have derived a variant of Lynden-Bell's [MNRAS, 155, 95 (1971)] C-method that considers, for each galaxy, the probability distribution in absolute magnitude resultant from the redshift error. This technique is tested through simulations and potential biases are quantified. We then apply the technique to a sample of galaxies with multicolor photometric data at moderately faint (B~23) limits, and compare the results to a subset of these data with spectroscopic redshifts. We find that the luminosity function derived from the photometric redshifts is consistent with that determined from spectroscopic redshifts.

Source: The Astronomical Journal

DOI: 10.1086/118066

Authors: M. U. Subbarao, A. J. Connolly, A. S. Szalay, D. C. Koo

Institutions: Johns Hopkins University, University of California Observatories

Language: English

Topic: Galaxies: Formation, Evolution, Phenomena

Subfield: Astronomy and Astrophysics

Field: Physics and Astronomy

Domain: Physical Sciences

Open Access status: bronze

Funder: National Science Foundation

Award: The Structure of the Universe Beyond 100 MPC