Explaining JWST counts with galaxy formation models

• DOI: 10.48550/arxiv.2502.04702
• Publication Date: 2025-02-07
• Authors: G. Manzoni; Tom Broadhurst; Jeremy Lim; Tao Liu; George F. Smoot; C. M. Baugh; Scott Tompkins; Rogier A. Windhorst; Simon P. Driver; Timothy Carleton; Brenda Frye; Leo W. H. Fung; Jiashuo Zhang; Seth H. Cohen; Christopher J. Co...; Norman A. Grogin; Rolf A. Jansen; Anton M. Koekemoer; Rafael Ortiz; N. Pirzkal; Christopher N. A....
• Keywords: Astrophysics of Galaxies (astro-ph.GA); FOS: Physical sciences; Astrophysics - Astrophysics of Galaxies

A distinct power-law break is apparent m_AB approximately 21 in the deep Near-Infrared PEARLS-JWST galaxy counts. The becomes more pronounced at longer wavelengths, with counts slope flattening smoothly magnitude shortest band used 0.9 microns, trending towards an increasingly broken by longest wavelength passband of JWST NIRCam, 4.4 microns. This behaviour remarkably well predicted GALFORM semi-analytical model formation. We use to diagnose origin this behaviour. find that features are responsible for are: 1) inherent luminosity function; 2) change volume element redshift and 3) redshift-dependent nature k-correction. study contribution these effects early late-type galaxies, using as a proxy morphology bulge-to-total stellar mass ratio. way which ellipticals populate bright end function while spirals dominate faint preserved number counts, characteristic 10^10 M_sun. also shape mainly driven galaxies relatively low (z < PEARLS observational limit 28. give comprehensive description why near-infrared observation look they do population dominant each magnitude.