Astrophysics Seminar: Andrew Marszewski, Northwestern University

The unprecedented observational power of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has revolutionized our understanding of the early Universe, while simultaneously unveiling new mysteries surrounding high-redshift galaxy formation. These mysteries include the peculiar chemical enrichment patterns of high-redshift galaxies and a newly observed abundant population of potential active galactic nuclei (AGN) at high redshift known as little red dots (LRDs). This talk will showcase the unique ability of cosmological zoom-in simulations of galaxy formation to address these mysteries. I will present analysis on a high-redshift suite of FIRE-2 simulations that identifies the physical drivers of the gas-phase mass-metallicity relation (MZR) and its weak evolution at high redshift. The bursty mode in which low-mass, high-redshift galaxies form plays a crucial role in driving the high-redshift MZR. Additionally, I will present preliminary results on how this burstiness affects detailed (element-by-element) abundance patterns of high-redshift galaxies. Finally, I will demonstrate the ability of bursty, low-mass (M_⋆∼10^(7-8) M_⊙) galaxies to host an abundant population of super-Eddington-accreting AGN at high redshift with demographics that qualitatively match those of LRDs.