@article{10902/4806,
year = {2013},
month = {9},
url = {http://hdl.handle.net/10902/4806},
abstract = {We report on results from the analysis of a stellar mass-selected (log (M*/M⊙) ≥ 9.0) sample of 1644 galaxies at 0.65 < z < 1.1 with ultradeep (mAB < 26.5) optical medium-band (R ∼ 50) photometry from the Survey for High-z Absorption Red and Dead Sources (SHARDS). The spectral resolution of SHARDS allows us to consistently measure the strength of the 4000 Å spectral break [Dn(4000), an excellent age indicator for the stellar populations of quiescent galaxies] for all galaxies at z ∼ 0.9 down to log (M*/M⊙) ∼ 9. The Dn(4000) index cannot be resolved from broad-band photometry, and measurements from optical spectroscopic surveys are typically limited to galaxies at least 10 times more massive. When combined with the rest-frame U − V colour, (U − V)r, Dn(4000) provides a powerful diagnostic of the extinction affecting the stellar population that is relatively insensitive to degeneracies with age, metallicity or star formation history. We use this novel approach to estimate de-reddened colours and light-weighted stellar ages for individual sources. We explore the relationships linking stellar mass, (U − V)r, and Dn(4000) for the sources in the sample, and compare them to those found in local galaxies. The main results are: (a) both Dn(4000) and (U − V)r correlate with M*. The dispersion in Dn(4000) values at a given M* increases with M*, while the dispersion for (U − V)r decreases due to the higher average extinction prevalent in massive star-forming galaxies. (b) For massive galaxies, we find a smooth transition between the blue cloud and red sequence in the intrinsic U − V colour, in contrast with other recent results. (c) At a fixed stellar age, we find a positive correlation between extinction and stellar mass. (d) The fraction of sources with declining or halted star formation increases steeply with the stellar mass, from ∼5 per cent at log (M*/M⊙) = 9.0–9.5 to ∼80 per cent at log (M*/M⊙) > 11, in agreement with downsizing scenarios.},
publisher = {Oxford University Press},
publisher = {Royal Astronomical Society},
publisher = {Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, vol. 434, iss.3, Pp.2136-2152 (2013)},
title = {SHARDS: stellar populations and star formation histories of a mass-selected sample of 0.65 < z < 1.1 galaxies},
author = {Hernán Caballero, Antonio and Alonso Herrero, Almudena and Pérez-González, Pablo G. and Cardiel, Nicolás and Cava, Antonio and Ferreras, Ignacio and Barro, Guillermo and Tresse, Laurence and Daddi, Emanuele and Cenarro, Javier and Conselice, Christopher J. and Guzmán, Rafael and Gallego, Jesús},
}