The JWST EXCELS Survey: gas-phase metallicity evolution at 2 < z < 8
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| Auteurs principaux: | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Preprint |
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2025
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| author | Stanton, T. M. Cullen, F. Carnall, A. C. Scholte, D. Arellano-Córdova, K. Z. Shapley, A. E. McLeod, D. J. Donnan, C. T. Begley, R. Davé, R. Dunlop, J. S. McLure, R. J. Rowlands, K. Bondestam, C. Hamadouche, M. L. Leung, H. -H. Stevenson, S. D. Taylor, E. |
| author_facet | Stanton, T. M. Cullen, F. Carnall, A. C. Scholte, D. Arellano-Córdova, K. Z. Shapley, A. E. McLeod, D. J. Donnan, C. T. Begley, R. Davé, R. Dunlop, J. S. McLure, R. J. Rowlands, K. Bondestam, C. Hamadouche, M. L. Leung, H. -H. Stevenson, S. D. Taylor, E. |
| contents | We present an analysis of the gas-phase mass-metallicity relationship (MZR) and fundamental metallicity relationship (FMR) for $65$ star-forming galaxies at $2 < z < 8$ from the JWST/EXCELS survey. We calculate gas-phase metallicities (12 + log(O/H)) using strong-line calibrations explicitly tested against the EXCELS sample, and report direct-method metallicities for $19$ galaxies. Our sample spans $8.1<\log(\rm M_\star/M_\odot)<10.3$ and $0<\log(\rm SFR/M_\odot \, yr^{-1})<2$, consistent with main-sequence star-forming galaxies at the same redshifts. We find a clear MZR at both $2<z<4$ ($\langle z \rangle = 3.2$) and $4<z<8$ ($\langle z \rangle = 5.5$), with consistent slopes and mild evolution in normalization of $\simeq 0.1 \, \mathrm{dex}$, matching trends from simulations and recent observations. Our results demonstrate rapid gas-phase enrichment in the early Universe; galaxies at $z \simeq 3$ (within the first $\simeq 15$ per cent of cosmic time) are enriched to $\simeq 40$ per cent of the metallicity of equivalent mass galaxies at $z=0$. We find tentative evidence for SFR-dependence in the MZR scatter, though results remain inconclusive and highlight the need for larger high-redshift samples. Comparison with locally derived FMRs reveals a clear offset consistent with other $z > 3$ studies. We discuss potential drivers of this offset, noting that high-redshift samples have significantly different physical properties compared to local samples used to define the $z=0$ FMR. Our results confirm that low-mass, high specific star-formation rate galaxies common at high redshift are inconsistent with the equilibrium conditions underlying the local FMR, and highlight the rapid chemical enrichment at early cosmic epochs. |
| format | Preprint |
| id |
arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2511_00705 |
| institution | arXiv |
| publishDate | 2025 |
| record_format | arxiv |
| spellingShingle | The JWST EXCELS Survey: gas-phase metallicity evolution at 2 < z < 8 Stanton, T. M. Cullen, F. Carnall, A. C. Scholte, D. Arellano-Córdova, K. Z. Shapley, A. E. McLeod, D. J. Donnan, C. T. Begley, R. Davé, R. Dunlop, J. S. McLure, R. J. Rowlands, K. Bondestam, C. Hamadouche, M. L. Leung, H. -H. Stevenson, S. D. Taylor, E. Astrophysics of Galaxies We present an analysis of the gas-phase mass-metallicity relationship (MZR) and fundamental metallicity relationship (FMR) for $65$ star-forming galaxies at $2 < z < 8$ from the JWST/EXCELS survey. We calculate gas-phase metallicities (12 + log(O/H)) using strong-line calibrations explicitly tested against the EXCELS sample, and report direct-method metallicities for $19$ galaxies. Our sample spans $8.1<\log(\rm M_\star/M_\odot)<10.3$ and $0<\log(\rm SFR/M_\odot \, yr^{-1})<2$, consistent with main-sequence star-forming galaxies at the same redshifts. We find a clear MZR at both $2<z<4$ ($\langle z \rangle = 3.2$) and $4<z<8$ ($\langle z \rangle = 5.5$), with consistent slopes and mild evolution in normalization of $\simeq 0.1 \, \mathrm{dex}$, matching trends from simulations and recent observations. Our results demonstrate rapid gas-phase enrichment in the early Universe; galaxies at $z \simeq 3$ (within the first $\simeq 15$ per cent of cosmic time) are enriched to $\simeq 40$ per cent of the metallicity of equivalent mass galaxies at $z=0$. We find tentative evidence for SFR-dependence in the MZR scatter, though results remain inconclusive and highlight the need for larger high-redshift samples. Comparison with locally derived FMRs reveals a clear offset consistent with other $z > 3$ studies. We discuss potential drivers of this offset, noting that high-redshift samples have significantly different physical properties compared to local samples used to define the $z=0$ FMR. Our results confirm that low-mass, high specific star-formation rate galaxies common at high redshift are inconsistent with the equilibrium conditions underlying the local FMR, and highlight the rapid chemical enrichment at early cosmic epochs. |
| title | The JWST EXCELS Survey: gas-phase metallicity evolution at 2 < z < 8 |
| topic | Astrophysics of Galaxies |
| url | https://arxiv.org/abs/2511.00705 |