The MeerKAT Massive Distant Clusters Survey: a search for diffuse radio emission in 30 massive SZ-selected clusters at $z > 1$

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Autori principali: Phuravhathu, Dakalo G., Hilton, M., Sikhosana, S. P., Klutse, D. Y., Knowles, K., van Marrewijk, J., Moodley, K., Mroczkowski, T., Oozeer, N., Partridge, B., Perrott, Y. C., Sifón, C., Sureshkumar, U.
Natura: Preprint
Pubblicazione: 2026
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author Phuravhathu, Dakalo G.
Hilton, M.
Sikhosana, S. P.
Klutse, D. Y.
Knowles, K.
van Marrewijk, J.
Moodley, K.
Mroczkowski, T.
Oozeer, N.
Partridge, B.
Perrott, Y. C.
Sifón, C.
Sureshkumar, U.
author_facet Phuravhathu, Dakalo G.
Hilton, M.
Sikhosana, S. P.
Klutse, D. Y.
Knowles, K.
van Marrewijk, J.
Moodley, K.
Mroczkowski, T.
Oozeer, N.
Partridge, B.
Perrott, Y. C.
Sifón, C.
Sureshkumar, U.
contents We present the results of a search for diffuse radio emission in a uniformly selected sample of 30 of the most massive Sunyaev-Zel'dovich selected galaxy clusters at $z > 1$, providing the first statistical constraints on the evolution of cluster-scale diffuse emission beyond this redshift. We also analyse the scaling relations between radio power ($P_{1.4\,\mathrm{GHz}}$) and cluster mass ($M_{\rm 500c}$) in this high-redshift sample. It is well established that radio halos are primarily found in the most massive clusters, where turbulent energy from major mergers can re-accelerate relativistic electrons and amplify magnetic fields on megaparsec scales. Deep MeerKAT 1.28 GHz observations reveal diffuse radio halos in eight clusters (27$\%$), while the remaining 21 (70$\%$) show no emission; one additional cluster (3$\%$) was excluded from the radio analysis due to poor data quality. The halo detection rate in this high-redshift sample is lower than at intermediate redshift, but remains higher than the $\lesssim 10\%$ occurrence generally predicted by theoretical models at $z \gtrsim 1$. The detected radio halos scatter around the best-fitting $P_{1.4\,\mathrm{GHz}}$-$M_{\rm 500c}^{\rm {Unc}}$ relation derived for the MMDCS sample, whereas non-detections populate the lower envelope of the radio power-mass plane, similar to trends seen at lower redshift. No cluster-scale radio relics or mini-halos are identified. Our findings highlight MeerKAT's ability to probe non-thermal processes in the most distant clusters and the need for deeper, lower-frequency surveys to uncover faint diffuse emission and test the persistence of the $P_{1.4\,\mathrm{GHz}}$-$M_{\rm 500}$ relation across cosmic time.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2605_04645
institution arXiv
publishDate 2026
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle The MeerKAT Massive Distant Clusters Survey: a search for diffuse radio emission in 30 massive SZ-selected clusters at $z > 1$
Phuravhathu, Dakalo G.
Hilton, M.
Sikhosana, S. P.
Klutse, D. Y.
Knowles, K.
van Marrewijk, J.
Moodley, K.
Mroczkowski, T.
Oozeer, N.
Partridge, B.
Perrott, Y. C.
Sifón, C.
Sureshkumar, U.
Astrophysics of Galaxies
Cosmology and Nongalactic Astrophysics
We present the results of a search for diffuse radio emission in a uniformly selected sample of 30 of the most massive Sunyaev-Zel'dovich selected galaxy clusters at $z > 1$, providing the first statistical constraints on the evolution of cluster-scale diffuse emission beyond this redshift. We also analyse the scaling relations between radio power ($P_{1.4\,\mathrm{GHz}}$) and cluster mass ($M_{\rm 500c}$) in this high-redshift sample. It is well established that radio halos are primarily found in the most massive clusters, where turbulent energy from major mergers can re-accelerate relativistic electrons and amplify magnetic fields on megaparsec scales. Deep MeerKAT 1.28 GHz observations reveal diffuse radio halos in eight clusters (27$\%$), while the remaining 21 (70$\%$) show no emission; one additional cluster (3$\%$) was excluded from the radio analysis due to poor data quality. The halo detection rate in this high-redshift sample is lower than at intermediate redshift, but remains higher than the $\lesssim 10\%$ occurrence generally predicted by theoretical models at $z \gtrsim 1$. The detected radio halos scatter around the best-fitting $P_{1.4\,\mathrm{GHz}}$-$M_{\rm 500c}^{\rm {Unc}}$ relation derived for the MMDCS sample, whereas non-detections populate the lower envelope of the radio power-mass plane, similar to trends seen at lower redshift. No cluster-scale radio relics or mini-halos are identified. Our findings highlight MeerKAT's ability to probe non-thermal processes in the most distant clusters and the need for deeper, lower-frequency surveys to uncover faint diffuse emission and test the persistence of the $P_{1.4\,\mathrm{GHz}}$-$M_{\rm 500}$ relation across cosmic time.
title The MeerKAT Massive Distant Clusters Survey: a search for diffuse radio emission in 30 massive SZ-selected clusters at $z > 1$
topic Astrophysics of Galaxies
Cosmology and Nongalactic Astrophysics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2605.04645