Lyman-alpha emission is produced ubiquitously by excited hydrogen, so it is a powerful tracer of the interactions among gas, stars, and AGN that shape galaxy formation. However, the resonant scattering of this emission line makes its interpretation complex. In this talk, I will describe three related surveys of galaxies at z~2-3 that make use of Lyman-alpha emission: the Keck Baryonic Structure Survey (KBSS), the KBSS-Lya, and the Keck Lyman Continuum Survey (KCLS). Through deep imaging and spectroscopy of thousands of diverse galaxies, we can use Lyman-alpha emission to characterize galaxy feedback, supermassive black hole growth, and the nature of cosmic reionization. In each of these efforts, the scattered nature of Lyman-alpha emission can be a tool as well as a challenge.
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2021-03-08T15:00:002021-03-08T16:00:00Galaxy Formation in Lyman-alpha or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Scattered LightEvent Information:
Lyman-alpha emission is produced ubiquitously by excited hydrogen, so it is a powerful tracer of the interactions among gas, stars, and AGN that shape galaxy formation. However, the resonant scattering of this emission line makes its interpretation complex. In this talk, I will describe three related surveys of galaxies at z~2-3 that make use of Lyman-alpha emission: the Keck Baryonic Structure Survey (KBSS), the KBSS-Lya, and the Keck Lyman Continuum Survey (KCLS). Through deep imaging and spectroscopy of thousands of diverse galaxies, we can use Lyman-alpha emission to characterize galaxy feedback, supermassive black hole growth, and the nature of cosmic reionization. In each of these efforts, the scattered nature of Lyman-alpha emission can be a tool as well as a challenge.Event Location:
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