Astronomia UDP

Devika Shobhana

I am a postdoctoral researcher, interested in the co-evolution of galaxies and AGN, and particularly in luminous Hot Dust Obscured Galaxies (Hot-DOGs), radio galaxies and Lyman break galaxies

Current Position: Postdoctoral researcher

Projects:

1) Hot Dut Obscured Galaxies (HotDOGs) are a rare class of high redshift (z > 1) dusty hyper-luminous galaxies identified with the WISE telescope. W2246, a Hot-DOG at z~4.6, is the most luminous object in the universe, powered by a powerful radio-quiet quasar. W2246 is a unique object in several ways. For example, previous studies have revealed that W2246 lives in an overdense environment, showing merger activity with at least three galaxies and also being associated with a highly turbulent interstellar medium (ISM). Through the MUSE observation of W2246, I intend to map the Lyma-alpha emission of the W2246 system. This will provide crucial insights into the role of environment, an understanding of the physical processes in W2246 system, feedback on the surrounding gas and dust, etc.

2) The simulations predicted nearly half a million radio sources, with radio-loud AGNs in the dominant fraction, to be present at z>4-7. This shows that there is a significant difference between the predicted number of radio sources at z>4 and what previous studies have observed so far. Utilizing Lyman Dropout technique and the data from one of the deep radio continuum surveys, Evolutionary Map of the Universe (EMU), I have selected 990 candidates for the ‘missing’ radio population at z>4-7. This sample revealed that ‘missing’ radio sources at z>4 comprise a new class of low-luminosity (high-z) radio-loud AGNs. I intend to carry out spectroscopic and multifrequency radio observations of this sample, which is essential to confirm their redshifts and fully characterize the ‘missing’ radio population at z>4

Highlights

  • ALMA-ANID funding (2023 – 2025)
  • Western Sydney University postgraduate research scholarship (2019 – 2022)
  • INSPIRE fellowship (2012 – 2017)
  • Member of EMU survey collaboration
  • Member of HotDOG working group

Publications

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5033-8056

Extracurricular activity

hiking, travelling