Connections between galaxy properties and halo formation time in the cosmic web

Abstract

ABSTRACT By linking galaxies in Sloan Digital Sky Survey to subhaloes in the ELUCID simulation, we investigate the relation between subhalo formation time and the galaxy properties, and the dependence of galaxy properties on the cosmic web environment. We find that central and satellite subhaloes have different formation time, where satellite subhaloes are older than central subhaloes at fixed mass. At fixed mass, the galaxy stellar-to-subhalo mass ratio is a good proxy of the subhalo formation time, and increases with the subhalo formation redshifts, especially for massive galaxies. The subhalo formation time is dependent on the cosmic web environment. For central subhaloes, there is a characteristic subhalo mass of ${\sim}10^{12} \, \mathrm{ h}^{-1}\,{\rm M}_\odot$, below which subhaloes in knots are older than subhaloes of the same mass in filaments, sheets, or voids, while above which it reverses. The cosmic web environmental dependence of stellar-to-subhalo mass ratio is similar to that of the subhalo formation time. For centrals, there is a characteristic subhalo mass of ${\sim}10^{12} \, \mathrm{ h}^{-1}\,{\rm M}_\odot$, below which the stellar-to-subhalo mass ratio is higher in knots than in filaments, sheets and voids, above which it reverses. Galaxies in knots have redder colours below $10^{12} \, \mathrm{ h}^{-1}\,{\rm M}_\odot$, while above $10^{12} \, \mathrm{ h}^{-1}\,{\rm M}_\odot$, the environmental dependence vanishes. Satellite fraction is strongly dependent on the cosmic web environment, and decreases from knots to filaments to sheets to voids, especially for low-mass galaxies.