MAMMOTH-LyC: Investigating the Role of Galaxy Mergers in a Strong Lyman Continuum Leaker at $z=2.39$
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| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Preprint |
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2025
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| _version_ | 1866910016160661504 |
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| author | Wang, Shengzhe Wang, Xin Malkan, Matthew A. Teplitz, Harry I. Davies, Rebecca L. Glazebrook, Karl Kim, Keunho J. Nanayakkara, Themiya Zhou, Hang Yang, Yiming Tsai, Chao-Wei Pang, Yuxuan Cai, Zheng Fan, Xiaohui Henry, Alaina Li, Zihao Shi, Dong Dong Zheng, Xian Zhong Yan, Zhiyu |
| author_facet | Wang, Shengzhe Wang, Xin Malkan, Matthew A. Teplitz, Harry I. Davies, Rebecca L. Glazebrook, Karl Kim, Keunho J. Nanayakkara, Themiya Zhou, Hang Yang, Yiming Tsai, Chao-Wei Pang, Yuxuan Cai, Zheng Fan, Xiaohui Henry, Alaina Li, Zihao Shi, Dong Dong Zheng, Xian Zhong Yan, Zhiyu |
| contents | The MAMMOTH-LyC survey is a cycle 30 Hubble Space Telescope (HST) medium program obtaining 18-orbit-deep WFC3/UVIS F225W imaging in two massive galaxy protocluster fields at $z\sim2.2$. We introduce this survey by reporting the discovery of J1244-LyC1, a strong Lyman continuum (LyC) leaker at $z = 2.39$, exhibiting clear merger signatures. J1244-LyC1 has a highly significant ($10σ$) LyC detection, corresponding to an absolute escape fraction of $f_{\mathrm{esc}} \! =\!36\%\pm4\%$ ($1σ$). The LyC emission is spatially resolved into multiple peaks that coincide with the system's disturbed morphology, confirming genuine multi-site LyC leakage. With a stellar mass of $10^{10.2}{M_\odot}$, J1244-LyC1 is both the first confirmed high-redshift LyC-leaking merger and the most massive LyC emitter known to date. We interpret J1244-LyC1 as a merger-driven starburst system in which tidal interactions have disrupted the interstellar medium, creating multiple low-column-density pathways that facilitate LyC escape. This discovery provides the first direct evidence of spatially resolved LyC escape in a merging system, offering new insight into the potential role of major mergers in driving the cosmic reionization. |
| format | Preprint |
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arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2512_23202 |
| institution | arXiv |
| publishDate | 2025 |
| record_format | arxiv |
| spellingShingle | MAMMOTH-LyC: Investigating the Role of Galaxy Mergers in a Strong Lyman Continuum Leaker at $z=2.39$ Wang, Shengzhe Wang, Xin Malkan, Matthew A. Teplitz, Harry I. Davies, Rebecca L. Glazebrook, Karl Kim, Keunho J. Nanayakkara, Themiya Zhou, Hang Yang, Yiming Tsai, Chao-Wei Pang, Yuxuan Cai, Zheng Fan, Xiaohui Henry, Alaina Li, Zihao Shi, Dong Dong Zheng, Xian Zhong Yan, Zhiyu Astrophysics of Galaxies The MAMMOTH-LyC survey is a cycle 30 Hubble Space Telescope (HST) medium program obtaining 18-orbit-deep WFC3/UVIS F225W imaging in two massive galaxy protocluster fields at $z\sim2.2$. We introduce this survey by reporting the discovery of J1244-LyC1, a strong Lyman continuum (LyC) leaker at $z = 2.39$, exhibiting clear merger signatures. J1244-LyC1 has a highly significant ($10σ$) LyC detection, corresponding to an absolute escape fraction of $f_{\mathrm{esc}} \! =\!36\%\pm4\%$ ($1σ$). The LyC emission is spatially resolved into multiple peaks that coincide with the system's disturbed morphology, confirming genuine multi-site LyC leakage. With a stellar mass of $10^{10.2}{M_\odot}$, J1244-LyC1 is both the first confirmed high-redshift LyC-leaking merger and the most massive LyC emitter known to date. We interpret J1244-LyC1 as a merger-driven starburst system in which tidal interactions have disrupted the interstellar medium, creating multiple low-column-density pathways that facilitate LyC escape. This discovery provides the first direct evidence of spatially resolved LyC escape in a merging system, offering new insight into the potential role of major mergers in driving the cosmic reionization. |
| title | MAMMOTH-LyC: Investigating the Role of Galaxy Mergers in a Strong Lyman Continuum Leaker at $z=2.39$ |
| topic | Astrophysics of Galaxies |
| url | https://arxiv.org/abs/2512.23202 |