Optically Invisible Galaxies at Cosmic Noon and beyond with JWST/UNCOVER

Abstract

The traditional selection bias in high-redshift galaxy surveys toward rest-frame ultraviolet emission has constrained our understanding of the high-redshift universe by systematically excluding optically faint (observer-frame) galaxies. Utilising JWST UNCOVER and MegaScience data of the Abell 2744 cluster field, we identify 113 high-redshift ($z > 2$) and 94 low-redshift ($z < 2$) HST-dark galaxies using a red $1.50-3.56 \ μ$m color criterion. Their physical properties were derived using multiwavelength photometry from 20 JWST/NIRCam and 7 HST filters. Unlike classical submillimeter and \textit{Spitzer}-selected HST-dark galaxies that primarily identify the most massive, dusty, highly star-forming galaxies, our study uncovers a moderately dusty population across a significantly broader range of stellar mass and star-formation rate. Leveraging gravitational magnification and ultra-deep JWST imaging, we found HST-dark galaxies with a stellar mass as low as $10^{7.5}$ at $z>2$. These galaxies have smaller sizes and follow the star-forming main sequence. Our analysis reveals a prominent peak in the Star Formation Rate Density at $z \approx 4.5$ ($9.89^{+6.93}_{-4.34} \times 10^{-3} \, M_{\odot} \, \text{yr}^{-1} \, \text{Mpc}^{-3}$). We also characterise a sub-population at $z < 2$ of Highly Extincted Low-Mass analogues with extremely low stellar masses (median $\log M_{\star}/M_{\odot} \approx 7.10$) and high dust extinction (median $A_V \approx 1.97$ mag). Our sample demonstrates the unique power of JWST to reveal this previously missing galaxy population and to provide a more complete census of galaxies in the high-z universe.