Ultraluminous Infrared Galaxies

Abstract

At luminosities above ~ 10 11 L ⊙ , infrared galaxies become the dominant population of extragalactic objects in the local Universe ( z < 0.5), being more numerous than optically selected starburst and Seyfert galaxies, and QSOs at comparable bolometric luminosity. At the highest luminosities, ultraluminous infrared galaxies (ULIGs: L ir > 10 12 L ⊙ ), outnumber optically selected QSOs by a factor of ~ 1.5–2. All of the nearest ULIGs ( z <0.1) appear to be advanced mergers that are powered by both a circumnuclear starburst and AGN, both of which are fueled by an enormous concentration of molecular gas (~ 10 10 M ⊙ ) that has been funneled into the merger nucleus. ULIGs may represent a primary stage in the formation of massive black holes and elliptical galaxy cores. The intense circumnuclear starburst that accompanies the ULIG phase may also represent a primary stage in the formation of globular clusters, and the metal enrichment of the intergalactic medium by gas and dust expelled from the nucleus due to the combined forces of supernova explosions and powerful stellar winds.