Structure finding in cosmological simulations: the state of affairs

• Autores: Knebe, Alexander; Pearce, Frazer R.; Lux, Hanni; Ascasibar, Yago; Behroozi, Peter; Casado, Javier; Corbett Moran, Christine; Diemand, Juerg; Dolag, Klaus; Dominguez Tenreiro, Rosa; Elahi, Pascal; Falck, Bridget; Gottlober, Stefan; Han, Jiaxin; Klypin, Anatoly; Lukic, Zarija; Maciejewski, Michal; McBride, Cameron K.; Merchan, Manuel Enrique; Muldrew, Stuart I.; Neyrinck, Mark; Onions, Julian; Planelles, Susana; Potter, Doug; Quilis, Vicent; Rasera, Yann; Ricker, Paul M.; Roy, Fabrice; Ruiz, Andrés Nicolás; Sgró, Mario Agustín; Springel, Volker; Stadel, Joachim; Sutter, P. M.; Tweed, Dylan; Zemp, Marcel
• Año de publicación: 2013
• Idioma: inglés
• Tipo de recurso: artículo
• Materia: GALAXIES EVOLUTION; GALAXIES HALOES; LUMINOSITY FUNCTION; GALAXIES STATISTICS
• Institución: Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas

The ever increasing size and complexity of data coming from simulations of cosmic structure formation demand equally sophisticated tools for their analysis. During the past decade, the art of object finding in these simulations has hence developed into an important discipline itself. A multitude of codes based upon a huge variety of methods and techniques have been spawned yet the question remained as to whether or not they will provide the same (physical) information about the structures of interest. Here we summarize and extent previous work of the ‘halo finder comparison project’: we investigate in detail the (possible) origin of any deviations across finders. To this extent, we decipher and discuss differences in halo-finding methods, clearly separating them from the disparity in definitions of halo properties. We observe that different codes not only find different numbers of objects leading to a scatter of up to 20 per cent in the halo mass and Vmax function, but also that the particulars of those objects that are identified by all finders differ. The strength of the variation, however, depends on the property studied, e.g. the scatter in position, bulk velocity, mass and the peak value of the rotation curve is practically below a few per cent, whereas derived quantities such as spin and shape show larger deviations. Our study indicates that the prime contribution to differences in halo properties across codes stems from the distinct particle collection methods and – to a minor extent – the particular aspects of how the procedure for removing unbound particles is implemented. We close with a discussion of the relevance and implications of the scatter across different codes for other fields such as semi-analytical galaxy formation models, gravitational lensing and observables in general.
Fil: Knebe, Alexander. Universidad Autónoma de Madrid; España
Fil: Pearce, Frazer R.. The University Of Nottingham; Reino Unido
Fil: Lux, Hanni. The University Of Nottingham; Reino Unido. University of Oxford; Reino Unido
Fil: Ascasibar, Yago. Universidad Autónoma de Madrid; España
Fil: Behroozi, Peter. Kavli Institute for Particle Astrophysics and Cosmology; Estados Unidos. University of Stanford; Estados Unidos
Fil: Casado, Javier. Universidad Autónoma de Madrid; España
Fil: Corbett Moran, Christine. Universitat Zurich; Suiza
Fil: Diemand, Juerg. Universitat Zurich; Suiza
Fil: Dolag, Klaus. Gobierno de la Republica Federal de Alemania. Max Planck Institut Fur Astrophysik; Alemania
Fil: Dominguez Tenreiro, Rosa. Universidad Autónoma de Madrid; España
Fil: Elahi, Pascal. The University Of Nottingham; Reino Unido. Shanghai Astronomical Observatory; China
Fil: Falck, Bridget. University of Portsmouth; Reino Unido
Fil: Gottlober, Stefan. Leibniz-Institut fur Astrophysik Potsdam; Alemania
Fil: Han, Jiaxin. Shanghai Astronomical Observatory; China. Chinese Academy of Sciences; República de China. University Of Durham; Reino Unido
Fil: Klypin, Anatoly. New Mexico State University; Estados Unidos
Fil: Lukic, Zarija. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory; Estados Unidos. Los Alamos National High Magnetic Field Laboratory; Estados Unidos
Fil: Maciejewski, Michal. Gobierno de la Republica Federal de Alemania. Max Planck Institut Fur Astrophysik; Alemania
Fil: McBride, Cameron K.. Vanderbilt University; Estados Unidos
Fil: Merchan, Manuel Enrique. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto de Astronomia Teórica y Experimental. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Observatorio Astronómico de Córdoba. Instituto de Astronomia Teórica y Experimental; Argentina
Fil: Muldrew, Stuart I.. The University Of Nottingham; Reino Unido
Fil: Neyrinck, Mark. University Johns Hopkins; Estados Unidos
Fil: Onions, Julian. The University Of Nottingham; Reino Unido
Fil: Planelles, Susana. Università degli Studi di Trieste; Italia
Fil: Potter, Doug. Universitat Zurich; Suiza
Fil: Quilis, Vicent. Universidad de Valencia; España
Fil: Rasera, Yann. Université Paris Diderot - Paris 7; Francia
Fil: Ricker, Paul M.. University of Illinois at Urbana; Estados Unidos
Fil: Roy, Fabrice. Université Paris Diderot - Paris 7; Francia
Fil: Ruiz, Andrés Nicolás. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto de Astronomia Teórica y Experimental. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Observatorio Astronómico de Córdoba. Instituto de Astronomia Teórica y Experimental; Argentina
Fil: Sgró, Mario Agustín. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto de Astronomia Teórica y Experimental. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Observatorio Astronómico de Córdoba. Instituto de Astronomia Teórica y Experimental; Argentina
Fil: Springel, Volker. Heidelberg Institute for Theoretical Studies; Alemania
Fil: Stadel, Joachim. Universitat Zurich; Suiza
Fil: Sutter, P. M.. University of Illinois at Urbana; Estados Unidos. Ohio State University; Estados Unidos. Institut d’Astrophysique de Paris; Francia
Fil: Tweed, Dylan. The Hebrew University Of Jerusalem; Israel
Fil: Zemp, Marcel. Peking University; República de China