Galaxy Formation Near the Epoch of Reionization
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Galaxy Formation Near the Epoch of Reionization Thesis by Michael Robert Santos In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy California Institute of Technology Pasadena, California 2004 (Defended 12 September 2003) ii For my family iii Acknowledgements I was very lucky during my years at Caltech to enjoy the support of so many great people. I couldn’t have done my Ph.D. without them, and I wouldn’t have wanted to. First I thank my advisors, Marc Kamionkowski and Richard Ellis. No one benefited as I did from their arrivals after my first year. Both were always full advisors to me, even though I wasn’t a full student for either. I am eternally grateful for their patience and impatience, and most of all for putting up with me for the better part of four years. I learned so much from them, but what really stands out is what they both taught me about effective communication. My collaborators were important contributors to this thesis, both through their work on the papers that make up the chapters, and through all that I learned from them over the years. Avi Loeb was friendly and supportive from start to finish of my Ph.D. Volker Bromm was an encouraging and patient guide through the process of writing my first paper. Jean-Paul Kneib and Johan Richard enthusiastically made crucial contributions to the critical-line mapping project. Before Marc and Richard, my first Caltech advisor was George Djorgovski. Though we didn’t end up working together, my interest in galaxy formation started with reading I did under George’s supervision and support, which I happily acknowledge. None of the work I did at Caltech would have been possible without the able and friendly administrative support in Robinson and Bridge, especially from Shirley Hampton and Judy McClain, and computer systems administration by Chris Mach, and Cheryl, Patrick, and Anu. I am grateful for the help of the observing assistants, instrument specialists, and all of the engineering and administrative staff at Keck Observatory, where the observations of my thesis were obtained, and to all of the scientists and engineers who contributed to the success of the observatory, the telescopes, and their instruments. Most of the astronomy I know I learned from fellow TAPIRs during informal discussions. Marc’s Monday night cosmology dinners taught me almost all of the cosmology I know, and I’m especially thankful for the contributions of Andrew Benson and Peng Oh. I also really enjoyed meeting new astronomers over strawberry lemonade (and high quality free lunch) at the Ath, so I thank the supporters and organizers of Speaker Lunch. I would have never been at Caltech, or in astronomy (or even in science for that matter), without iv the education and encouragement I received during college. At Vassar Debbie Elmegreen, my first astronomy teacher and advisor, and Fred Chromey made me even more excited about becoming an astronomer than I was about becoming a lawyer. My enthusiasm was fueled by my summer research advisors John Salzer and Caryl Gronwall, and Stephen Levine. And of course I thank NASA, for providing some of the financial support for my graduate studies, and the NSF, for funding my next adventure at Cambridge. Even with all of the academic support I enjoyed, I wouldn’t have had much fun in grad school if it weren’t for a bunch of fantastic people in my life, near and far. I had a great quality of life during (most of) grad school, in large part due to a lot of little pleasures in life around me outside of Caltech. And so I’m thankful for: Sarkis and the staff at A&A Tire and Auto Repair, for working on my ride (picture me rollin’); the In-N-Out staff on Foothill and at the 134 and 2, for late night 3x3’s and vanilla shakes; the Blockbuster on Lake, for being near the Cats; Griffith Observatory, for all the prospective visits; Point Dume; House of Pies, for their fresh strawberry pie; the Rialto, for the midnight screenings; Ralph’s on Lake, for being open 24 hours; the abundance of movie theaters, for everything from Hurly Burly to Splendor to American Pie; the US women’s soccer team, for the World Cup Final in the Rose Bowl; breakfast at Home; Magic Mountain, for letting us ride Viper six consecutive times without getting out, and for my pants-less Batman ride; Green Sand Beach; Burger Continental, for their welcoming weirdness; the WB network, for the glory years, especially Buffy and Dawson’s; Robyn, Daisy, Lara, and the other members of the Vassar Club of Southern California steering committee, for fun times; Dr. Dre, Snoop, and Eminem, for much of the soundtrack to my Ph.D.; the waitstaff at Louise’s, for their attentiveness; and the people responsible for Google and IMDb, for things you don’t want to know about. There was plenty going on at Caltech as well to keep me entertained, and I thank: the Dance Troupe, especially Sarah for her leadership, for teaching me something completely new; the other members of the Everhart Lecture Series committee, for the nights learning about Caltech research over Koo Koo Roo; Lee Armus and the rest of Ether Binge, for the chance to slide into third (and a championship); GSC Soccer and everyone who played (and especially those who ran lines) for the Cataclysmic Variables over the years, for helping astronomy represent on the field (and two championships); the PJ Young fund and the participants of the ski trips, especially the organizers, Brian and Josh, for giving me the opportunity to learn to ski, and to soar through the air...and to crash into a snow gun. I was fortunate to keep in touch with a lot of old friends during grad school, and keeping up with their trials and triumphs always helped keep my life in perspective. They are responsible for far too v many fantastic experiences to recount here, but the least I can do is record some of the most salient ones. And so I thank: Debbie Missal, Megan, and Heather, for two great Thanksgivings at times when I really needed something to cheer me up, for which I’ll always give thanks; Kevin, for the wild ride through the Scottish Highlands; Mikey, for frisbee in the streets Beverly Hills; Srinu, for our descent off Point Dume; Marissa, for sharing the most dramatic life this side of the Creek; Dave, for scrambling in Yosemite; Brian, for posing on that car in Vegas; Mark, for your perseverance in life and love and email; and Hunter, for not flinching first; Jessica, for pants; Hayden, for the thumbs up at the Peep Show; Austin, for hanging out together 10 times in four cities; Matt, for soldiering through the snowboarding trips; Steuerman, for random sports and crazy stories; Michalak, for the chance to mountainboard (and the helmet that saved my scalp); and Erich, for countless weekends that made me feel like I was in college again, and more fun than is legal in the OC. I was especially lucky to live with two of the best roommates ever. First at 1020 Del Mar #203, I was randomly matched with Adam, quite possibly the nicest guy ever. He taught me basically everything I know about aeronautics and Islam, and anytime we hung out I always learned something new and interesting. And I got him hooked on Dawson’s. Then Erin and I moved into 4444 Avocado #103, thanks to her hard work finding an affordable apartment in hip and trendy Los Feliz (and very near House of Pies). Even though we saw each other surprisingly little for roommates, living with Erin gave me a wacky and wonderful world away from work. Grad school would have been a shadow of the rich experience it was without the friends I had there. I’m thankful for: Sam, Cindy, and Andrew, for spreading the Buffy love; anyone who ever came out for a prospective event I organized; having people to talk with at work after 2am; hanging around donuts after 4pm; Journal Beers that carried on into dinner; lunches at Chandler and Avery; birthday dinners (those who kept it real); Yama, for his Q’s; anyone who brought donuts from Donut Man; FIFA in the Ram Van; watching Micol play Dance Dance Revolution; Caltech quizbowls; $6 Dodgers tickets; Speaker Lunch eating contests; and so many more little moments that meant a lot to me. I was also lucky to have great officemates, which is important to someone as talkative as I am. Yoram was much more fun than he gives himself credit for, and I learned a lot from him. And it was a distinct pleasure to share an office and foodstuffs with Alison (actually, I did most of the sharing on both accounts). She is as much fun as she gives herself credit for; there was never a dull moment with Alison around. And just for fun: Jigglypuff. My first officemates were my two surviving classmates, Matt and Bryan. There is no way to summarize variety of interesting things they taught me and the fun times we had. From extremely low potassium and the flaming bull, to photography, to finding the Golden Square, to diesel engines, to standing behind the lamp, to passing the qual, to xpilot, to Pie, to racing at Uncle Kal’s and Speedzone, I had so many great times with them in and out of 03 Robinson. Adversity bonds people vi together, and I was lucky to be able to share the struggles of first year with Matt, Bryan, and Gwen, who put the rest of us to shame in classes and then left for greener pastures.