Aims. The aim of our study is to understand the variety of observed Lyα line profiles and strengths in Lyman Break Galaxies (LBGs) and Lyα emitters (LAEs), the physical parameters governing them, and hence derive constraints on the gas and dust content and stellar populations of these objects. Methods. Using our 3D Lyα radiation transfer code including gas and dust, MCLya, we fit 11 LBGs from the FORS Deep Field with redshifts between 2.8 and 5. A simple geometry of a spherically expanding shell of H i is adopted. Results. The variety of observed Lyα profiles is successfully reproduced. Most objects show outflow velocities of V exp ∼ 150−200 km s −1 ; two objects are most likely quasi-static. The radial H i column density ranges from N HI ∼ 2 × 10 19 to 7 × 10 20 cm −2. Our Lyα profile fits yield values of E(B − V) ∼ 0.05−0.2 for the gas extinction. We find indications for a dust-togas ratio higher than the Galactic value, and for a substantial scatter. The escape fraction of Lyα photons is found to be determined primarily by the extinction, and a simple fit formula is proposed. In this case a measurement of EW(Lyα) obs can yield E(B − V), if the intrinsic Lyα equivalent width is known (or assumed). Intrinsic EW(Lyα) int ∼ 50−100 Å are found for 8/11 objects, as expected for stellar populations forming constantly over long periods (> ∼ 10−100 Myr). In three cases we found indications of younger populations. Our model results also allow us to understand observed correlations between EW(Lyα) obs and other observables such as FWHM(Lyα), E(B − V), SFR(UV) etc. We suggest that most observed trends of Lyα, both in LBGs and LAEs, are driven by variations of N HI and the accompanying variation of the dust content. Ultimately, the main parameter responsible for these variations may be the galaxy mass. We also show that there is a clear overlap between LBGs and LAEs: at z

Context. Narrow-band surveys to detect Lyα emitters are powerful tools for identifying high, and very high, redshift galaxies. Although samples are increasing at redshifts z = 3−6, the nature of these galaxies is still poorly known. The number of galaxies detected at redshifts below z ∼ 3 are also small. Aims. We study the properties of z = 2.25 Lyα emitters and compare them with those of z > 3 Lyα emitters.Methods. We present narrow-band imaging made with the MPG/ESO 2.2m telescope and the WFI (Wide Field Imager) detector. Using this data, we have searched for emission-line objects. We find 170 candidate typical Lyα emitters and 17 candidates that we regard as high UV-transmission Lyα emitters. We have derived the magnitudes of these objects in 8 photometric bands from u * to K s , and studied whether they have X-ray and/or radio counterparts. Results. We demonstrate that there has been significant evolution in the properties of Lyα emitters between redshift z ∼ 3 and z = 2.25. The spread in spectral energy distributions (SEDs) at the lower redshift is larger and we detect a significant AGN contribution in the sample. The distribution of the equivalent widths is narrower than at z ∼ 3, with only a few candidates with rest-frame equivalent width above the predicted limit of 240 Å. The star formation rates derived from the Lyα emission compared to those derived from the UV emission are lower by on average a factor of ∼1.8, indicative of a significant absorption by dust. Conclusions. Lyα emitters at redshift z = 2.25 may be more evolved than Lyα emitters at higher redshift. The red SEDs imply more massive, older and/or dustier galaxies at lower redshift than observed at higher redshifts. The decrease in equivalent widths and star formation rates indicate more quiescent galaxies, with in general less star formation than in higher redshift galaxies. At z = 2.25, AGN appear to be more abundant and also to contribute more to the Lyα emitting population.

Abstract. We present a catalogue and atlas of low-resolution spectra of a well defined sample of 341 objects in the FORS Deep Field. All spectra were obtained with the FORS instruments at the ESO VLT with essentially the same spectroscopic set-up. The observed extragalactic objects cover the redshift range 0.1 to 5.0. 98 objects are starburst galaxies and QSOs at z > 2. Using this data set we investigated the evolution of the characteristic spectral properties of bright starburst galaxies and their mutual relations as a function of redshift. Significant evolutionary effects were found for redshifts 2 < z < 4. Most conspicuous are the increase of the average C IV absorption strength, of the dust reddening, and of the intrinsic UV luminosity, and the decrease of the average Lyα emission strength with decreasing redshift. In part the observed evolutionary effects can be attributed to an increase of the metallicity of the galaxies with cosmic age. Moreover, the increase of the total star-formation rates and the stronger obscuration of the starburst cores by dusty gas clouds suggest the occurrence of more massive starbursts at later cosmic epochs.

Context. A significant fraction of the high-redshift galaxies show strong Lyα emission lines. For redshifts z > 5, most known galaxies belong to this class. However, so far not much is known about the physical structure and nature of these objects. Aims. Our aim is to analyse the Lyα emission in a sample of high-redshift UV-continuum selected galaxies and to derive the physical conditions that determine the Lyα profile and the line strength. Methods. VLT/FORS spectra with a resolution of R ≈ 2000 of 16 galaxies in the redshift range of z = 2.7 to 5 are presented. The observed Lyα profiles are compared with theoretical models. Results. The Lyα lines range from pure absorption (EW = −17 Å) to strong emission (EW = 153 Å). Most Lyα emission lines show an asymmetric profile, and three galaxies have a double-peaked profile. Both types of profiles can be explained by a uniform model consisting of an expanding shell of neutral and ionised hydrogen around a compact starburst region. The broad, blueshifted, low-ionisation interstellar absorption lines indicate a galaxy-scale outflow of the ISM. The strengths of these lines are found to be determined in part by the velocity dispersion of the outflowing medium. We find star-formation rates of these galaxies ranging from SFR UV = 1.2 to 63.2 M yr −1 uncorrected for dust absorption. Conclusions. The Lyα emission strength of our target galaxies is found to be determined by the amount of dust and the kinematics of the outflowing material.

We study the multi-wavelength properties of a set of 171 Lyα emitting candidates at redshift z = 2.25 found in the COSMOS field, with the aim of understanding the underlying stellar populations in the galaxies. We especially seek to understand what the dust contents, ages and stellar masses of the galaxies are, and how they relate to similar properties of Lyα emitters at other redshifts. The candidates here are shown to have different properties from those of Lyα emitters found at higher redshift, by fitting the spectral energy distributions (SEDs) using a Monte-Carlo Markov-Chain technique and including nebular emission in the spectra. The stellar masses, and possibly the dust contents, are higher, with stellar masses in the range log M * = 8.5−11.0 M and A V = 0.0−2.5 mag. Young population ages are well constrained, but the ages of older populations are typically unconstrained. In 15% of the galaxies only a single, young population of stars is observed. We show that the Lyα fluxes of the best fit galaxies are correlated with their dust properties, with higher dust extinction in Lyα faint galaxies. Testing for whether results derived from a light-weighted stack of objects correlate to those found when fitting individual objects we see that stellar masses are robust to stacking, but ages and especially dust extinctions are derived incorrectly from stacks. We conclude that the stellar properties of Lyα emitters at z = 2.25 are different from those at higher redshift and that they are diverse. Lyα selection appears to be tracing systematically different galaxies at different redshifts.