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arxiv: 2506.15779 · v1 · submitted 2025-06-18 · 🌌 astro-ph.GA

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Novel zsim~10 auroral line measurements extend the gradual offset of the FMR deep into the first Gyr of cosmic time

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classification 🌌 astro-ph.GA
keywords galaxiesapproxcosmicmeasurementslambdalineopticalrelation
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The mass assembly and chemical enrichment of the first galaxies provide key insights into their star-formation histories and the earliest stellar populations at cosmic dawn. Here we compile and utilize new, high-quality spectroscopic JWST/NIRSpec Prism observations from the JWST archive. We extend the wavelength coverage beyond the standard pipeline cutoff up to 5.5$\mu$m, enabling a detailed examination of the rest-frame optical emission-line properties for galaxies at $z\approx 10$. The improved calibration allows us to detect H$\beta$ and the [OIII]$\lambda\lambda 4959,5007$ doublet and resolve the auroral [OIII]$\lambda 4363$ line for the 11 galaxies in our sample ($z=9.3-10.0$) to obtain direct $T_e$-based metallicity measurements. We find that all galaxies show high ionisation fields and electron temperatures, with derived metallicities in the range $12+\log {\rm (O/H)} = 7.1 - 8.3$, consistent with previous strong-line diagnostics at high-z. We derive an empirical relation for $M_{\rm UV}$ and 12+log(O/H) at $z\approx 10$, useful for future higher-z studies, and show that the sample galaxies are `typical' star-forming galaxies though with relatively high specific star-formation rates and with evidence for bursty star formation. Combining the rest-frame optical line analysis and detailed UV to optical SED modelling, we determine the mass-metallicity relation and the fundamental-metallicity relation of the sample, pushing the redshift frontier of these measurements to $z=10$. These results, together with literature measurements, point to a gradually decreasing MZR at higher redshifts, with a break in the FMR at $z\approx 3$, decreasing to metallicities $\approx 3\times$ lower at $z=10$ than observed during the majority of cosmic time at $z=0-3$, likely caused by massive pristine gas inflows diluting the observed metal abundances during early galaxy assembly at cosmic dawn.

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Cited by 3 Pith papers

Reviewed papers in the Pith corpus that reference this work. Sorted by Pith novelty score.

  1. Metal Mayhem at $\rm z \sim 7-10$: Diversity and Evolution of Gas-Phase Metallicity Gradients

    astro-ph.GA 2026-04 unverdicted novelty 7.0

    Galaxies at z~7-10 display diverse metallicity gradients often flattened by tidal interactions or feedback, and sit well below the local fundamental metallicity relation due to pristine gas accretion.

  2. Shape of Direct-Method Mass-Metallicity Relation with JWST: Fast-Track Nitrogen and Helium Enrichment

    astro-ph.GA 2026-05 unverdicted novelty 6.0

    JWST auroral-line selected galaxies at high redshift show an MZR slope of 0.38 with selection biases favoring high-SFR low-metallicity systems, while stacked non-detections lie closer to the fundamental metallicity relation.

  3. Paschen Jumps in Little Red Dots: Evidence for Nebular Continua

    astro-ph.GA 2026-04 unverdicted novelty 6.0

    Paschen jumps in Little Red Dots indicate their continua originate from free-bound recombination emission in low-temperature nebular gas rather than thermalized or AGN components.