SE3D: Building a radiative transfer emulator to fit panchromatic resolved galaxy observations with 3D models of dust and stars

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Main Authors: Ramnichal, Steven, Zhang, Junkai, Wuyts, Stijn, Li, Cheng
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
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author Ramnichal, Steven
Zhang, Junkai
Wuyts, Stijn
Li, Cheng
author_facet Ramnichal, Steven
Zhang, Junkai
Wuyts, Stijn
Li, Cheng
contents We present a framework for analysing panchromatic and spatially resolved galaxy observations, dubbed SE3D. SE3D simultaneously and self-consistently models a galaxy's spectral energy distribution and its spectral distributions of global structural parameters: the wavelength-dependent galaxy size, light profile and projected axis ratio. To this end, it employs a machine learning emulator trained on a large library of toy model galaxies processed with 3D dust radiative transfer and mock-observed under a range of viewing angles. The toy models vary in their stellar and dust geometries, and include radial stellar population gradients. The computationally efficient machine learning emulator uses a Bayesian neural network architecture, and reproduces the spectral distributions at an accuracy of ~ 0.05 dex or less across the dynamic range of input parameters, and across the rest-frame UVJ colour space spanned by observed galaxies. We carry out a sensitivity analysis demonstrating that the emulator has successfully learned the intricate mappings between galaxy physical properties and direct observables (fluxes, colours, sizes, size ratios between different wavebands, ...). We further discuss the physical conditions giving rise to a range of total-to-selective attenuation ratios, Rv, with among them most prominently the projected dust surface mass density.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2511_19623
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle SE3D: Building a radiative transfer emulator to fit panchromatic resolved galaxy observations with 3D models of dust and stars
Ramnichal, Steven
Zhang, Junkai
Wuyts, Stijn
Li, Cheng
Astrophysics of Galaxies
Instrumentation and Methods for Astrophysics
We present a framework for analysing panchromatic and spatially resolved galaxy observations, dubbed SE3D. SE3D simultaneously and self-consistently models a galaxy's spectral energy distribution and its spectral distributions of global structural parameters: the wavelength-dependent galaxy size, light profile and projected axis ratio. To this end, it employs a machine learning emulator trained on a large library of toy model galaxies processed with 3D dust radiative transfer and mock-observed under a range of viewing angles. The toy models vary in their stellar and dust geometries, and include radial stellar population gradients. The computationally efficient machine learning emulator uses a Bayesian neural network architecture, and reproduces the spectral distributions at an accuracy of ~ 0.05 dex or less across the dynamic range of input parameters, and across the rest-frame UVJ colour space spanned by observed galaxies. We carry out a sensitivity analysis demonstrating that the emulator has successfully learned the intricate mappings between galaxy physical properties and direct observables (fluxes, colours, sizes, size ratios between different wavebands, ...). We further discuss the physical conditions giving rise to a range of total-to-selective attenuation ratios, Rv, with among them most prominently the projected dust surface mass density.
title SE3D: Building a radiative transfer emulator to fit panchromatic resolved galaxy observations with 3D models of dust and stars
topic Astrophysics of Galaxies
Instrumentation and Methods for Astrophysics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2511.19623