Speaker
Dr
Michele Fumagalli
(Carnegie Observatories/Princeton University)
Description
Already from the first quasar surveys, it became evident that Lyman limit systems (LLSs) differ from the Lyα forest and are likely associated to galaxies. Recently, this idea has received renewed attention because of the proposed connection between LLSs and the so-called "cold streams" that are postulated to feed star forming galaxies at z>2. In this talk, I will present results from a new survey that has been designed to study the properties of LLSs at z~2.5-3. With the aid of simple analytic models and numerical simulations, I will then discuss the link between LLSs and the circumgalactic medium of galaxies at z~2-3. I will also propose a new experiment to map the optically thick gas around distant galaxies, without the need for large samples of galaxy/LLS associations.
