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Evidence for Reionization at z ~ 6: Detection of a Gunn-Peterson Trough in a z = 6.28 Quasar* **

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Robert H. Becker1,2, Xiaohui Fan3, Richard L. White4, Michael A. Strauss5, Vijay K. Narayanan5, Robert H. Lupton5, James E. Gunn5, James Annis6, Neta A. Bahcall5, J. Brinkmann7, A. J. Connolly8, István Csabai9,10, Paul C. Czarapata6, Mamoru Doi11, Timothy M. Heckman9, G. S. Hennessy12, Željko Ivezić5, G. R. Knapp5, Don Q. Lamb13, Timothy A. McKay14, Jeffrey A. Munn15, Thomas Nash6, Robert Nichol16, Jeffrey R. Pier15, Gordon T. Richards17, Donald P. Schneider17, Chris Stoughton6, Alexander S. Szalay9, Aniruddha R. Thakar9 and D. G. York13,18

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We present moderate-resolution Keck spectroscopy of quasars at z = 5.82, 5.99, and 6.28, discovered by the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). We find that the Lyα absorption in the spectra of these quasars evolves strongly with redshift. To z ~ 5.7, the Lyα absorption evolves as expected from an extrapolation from lower redshifts. However, in the highest-redshift object, SDSSp J103027.10+052455.0 (z = 6.28), the average transmitted flux is 0.0038 ± 0.0026 times that of the continuum level over 8450 Å < λ < 8710 Å (5.95 < zabs < 6.16), consistent with zero flux. Thus the flux level drops by a factor of greater than 150 and is consistent with zero flux in the Lyα forest region immediately blueward of the Lyα emission line, compared with a drop by a factor of ~10 at zabs ~ 5.3. A similar break is seen at Lyβ; because of the decreased oscillator strength of this transition, this allows us to put a considerably stronger limit, τeff > 20, on the optical depth to Lyα absorption at z = 6. This is a clear detection of a complete Gunn-Peterson trough, caused by neutral hydrogen in the intergalactic medium. Even a small neutral hydrogen fraction in the intergalactic medium would result in an undetectable flux in the Lyα forest region. Therefore, the existence of the Gunn-Peterson trough by itself does not indicate that the quasar is observed prior to the reionization epoch. However, the fast evolution of the mean absorption in these high-redshift quasars suggests that the mean ionizing background along the line of sight to this quasar has declined significantly from z ~ 5 to 6, and the universe is approaching the reionization epoch at z ~ 6.


Footnote
*  Based on observations obtained at the W. M. Keck Observatory, which is operated as a scientific partnership among the California Institute of Technology, the University of California and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, made possible by the generous financial support of the W. M. Keck Foundation, and with the Sloan Digital Sky Survey, which is owned and operated by the Astrophysical Research Consortium.
Footnote
**  This paper is dedicated to the memory of Arthur F. Davidsen (1944-2001), a pioneer in the study of the intergalactic medium and a leader in the development of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey.
Keywords

cosmology: observations; galaxies: formation; quasars: absorption lines; quasars: general


Dates

Issue 6 (2001 December)

Received 2001 August 6, accepted for publication 2001 September 4



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  10. The Sloan Digital Sky Survey Quasar Catalog. III. Third Data Release

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