Studying the Evolution of Cosmic Structure with Distant X-ray selected Clusters of Galaxies

• Applicants: Professor Dr. Hans Böhringer; Privatdozent Dr. Axel Schwope
• Subject Area: Astrophysics and Astronomy
• Term: from 2005 to 2012
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 5448522

• Final Report Year: 2012

Final Report Abstract

Galaxy clusters are ideal tracers of the cosmic large-scale structure and its growth rate as a function of time. This makes them prime probes for the test of cosmological models. They also form important laboratories to follow the evolution of galaxies and the baryonic intergalactic medium as a function of environmental conditions. They provide us with information on galaxy and star formation history and their effects on the intergalactic medium through heavy element pollution and entropy production. Whereas a good understanding of the present day cluster population is emerging, our knowledge of distant clusters and the cosmological implications of their properties is still sparse. X-ray observations are currently the best means to find massive distant galaxy clusters, because they display the clusters at high contrast. The growing archive of X-ray observations conducted with XMM-Newton provides the best available resource to conduct a survey for distant clusters, vastly superseding all similar efforts to date. Our survey project that exploits this unique opportunity to find at least 30 new clusters at redshift greater one. These discovery of more than 30 clusters with redshift greater than 0.8 by now has supplied us with interesting study cases and provided interesting insights into the evolution of galaxy clusters and their galaxy population.

Publications

• (2009). Hubble space telescope weak-lensing study of the galaxy cluster xmmu j2235. 3–2557 at z∼ 1.4: a surprisingly massive galaxy cluster when the universe is one-third of its current age. The Astrophysical Journal, 704(1), 672.
  Jee, M. J.; Rosati, P.; Ford, H. C.; Dawson, K. S.; Lidman, C.; Perlmutter, S.; Demarco, R.; Strazzullo, V.; Mullis, C.; Böhringer, H.; Fassbender, R.
  
• (2009): Multi-wavelength study of XMMU J2235.3-2557: the most massive galaxy cluster at z > 1. In: A&A 508 (2), S. 583–591
  Rosati, P.; Tozzi, P.; Gobat, R.; Santos, J. S.; Nonino, M.; Demarco, R.; Lidman, C.; Mullis, C. R.; Strazzullo, V.; Böhringer, H.; Fassbender, R.; Dawson, K.; Tanaka, M.; Jee, J.; Ford, H.; Lamer, G.; Schwope, A.
  
• (2009): Multiwavelength observations of a rich galaxy cluster at z $\thicksim$ 1. In: A&A 501 (1), S. 49–60
  Santos, J. S.; Rosati, P.; Gobat, R.; Lidman, C.; Dawson, K.; Perlmutter, S.; Böhringer, H.; Balestra, I.; Mullis, C. R.; Fassbender, R.; Kohnert, J.; Lamer, G.; Rettura, A.; Rité, C.; Schwope, A.
  
• (2010): Cluster galaxies in XMMU J2235-2557: galaxy population properties in most massive environments at z ~ 1.4. In: A&A 524, A17
  Strazzullo, V.; Rosati, P.; Pannella, M.; Gobat, R.; Santos, J. S.; Nonino, M.; Demarco, R.; Lidman, C.; Tanaka, M.; Mullis, C. R.; Nuñez, C.; Rettura, A.; Jee, M. J.; Böhringer, H.; Bender, R.; Bouwens, R. J.; Dawson, K.; Fassbender, R.; Franx, M.; Perlmutter, S.; Postman, M.
  
• (2010): The evolution of cool-core clusters. In: A&A 521, A64
  Santos, J. S.; Tozzi, P.; Rosati, P.; Böhringer, H.
  
• (2010): XMMU J100750.5+125818: a strong lensing cluster at z = 1.082. In: A&A 513, L10
  Schwope, A. D.; Lamer, G.; Hoon, A. de; Kohnert, J.; Böhringer, H.; Dietrich, J. P.; Fassbender, R.; Mohr, J.; Mühlegger, M.; Pierini, D.; Pratt, G. W.; Quintana, H.; Rosati, P.; Santos, J.; Šuhada, R.
  
• (2011): A pan-chromatic view of the galaxy cluster XMMU J1230.3+1339 at z = 0.975. In: A&A 527, A78
  Fassbender, R.; Böhringer, H.; Santos, J. S.; Pratt, G. W.; Šuhada, R.; Kohnert, J.; Lerchster, M.; Rovilos, E.; Pierini, D.; Chon, G.; Schwope, A. D.; Lamer, G.; Mühlegger, M.; Rosati, P.; Quintana, H.; Nastasi, A.; Hoon, A. de; Seitz, S.; Mohr, J. J.
  
• (2011): Discovery of a massive X-ray luminous galaxy cluster at z = 1.579. In: A&A 531, L15
  Santos, J. S.; Fassbender, R.; Nastasi, A.; Böhringer, H.; Rosati, P.; Šuhada, R.; Pierini, D.; Nonino, M.; Mühlegger, M.; Quintana, H.; Schwope, A. D.; Lamer, G.; Hoon, A. de; Strazzullo, V.
  
• (2011): Discovery of the X-ray selected galaxy cluster XMMU J0338.8+0021 at z = 1.49. In: A&A 532, L6
  Nastasi, A.; Fassbender, R.; Böhringer, H.; Šuhada, R.; Rosati, P.; Pierini, D.; Verdugo, M.; Santos, J. S.; Schwope, A. D.; Hoon, A. de; Kohnert, J.; Lamer, G.; Mühlegger, M.; Quintana, H.
  
• (2011): Exploring the galaxy cluster-group transition regime at high redshifts. In: A&A 530, A110
  Šuhada, R.; Fassbender, R.; Nastasi, A.; Böhringer, H.; Hoon, A. de; Pierini, D.; Santos, J. S.; Rosati, P.; Mühlegger, M.; Quintana, H.; Schwope, A. D.; Lamer, G.; Kohnert, J.; Pratt, G. W.
  
• (2011): Observational constraints on the redshift evolution of X-ray scaling relations of galaxy clusters out to z ~ 1.5. In: A&A 535, A4
  Reichert, A.; Böhringer, H.; Fassbender, R.; Mühlegger, M.
  
• (2011): The x-ray luminous galaxy cluster population at 0.9 < z ≲ 1.6 as revealed by the XMM- Newton Distant Cluster Project. In: New J. Phys. 13 (12), S. 125014
  Fassbender, R.; Böhringer, H.; Nastasi, A.; Šuhada, R.; Mühlegger, M.; Hoon, A. de; Kohnert, J.; Lamer, G.; Mohr, J. J.; Pierini, D.; Pratt, G. W.; Quintana, H.; Rosati, P.; Santos, J. S.; Schwope, A. D.
  
• 2011, A&A, 527, L10(2011): The X-ray luminous galaxy cluster XMMU J1007.4+1237 at z = 1.56. In: A&A 527, L10
  Fassbender, R.; Nastasi, A.; Böhringer, H.; Šuhada, R.; Santos, J. S.; Rosati, P.; Pierini, D.; Mühlegger, M.; Quintana, H.; Schwope, A. D.; Lamer, G.; Hoon, A. de; Kohnert, J.; Pratt, G. W.; Mohr, J. J.