Chapter 1: Samples and Selection Effects
The following sections are included:
Introduction: which sample for which science goal?
General rules to optimize the scientific returns from a survey of distant galaxies
General rules for estimating magnitudes
Monochromatic and integrated magnitudes
Photometric systems
Total magnitudes and proxies
Absolute magnitudes
Pre-selection of a sample prior to redshift measurement
Photometric catalogs
Statistics: which size for a redshift survey?
Cosmological variance
Depth of the photometry and selection effects related to surface-brightness
Other selection effects: Malmquist bias, Eddington bias, and lensing effects
K-correction and choice of the selecting magnitude
Redshift surveys
Redshift measurements and spectroscopic selection effects
Determination of the LF, uncertainties and completeness tests
Examples of surveys (CFRS, DEEP2, VVDS, zCOSMOS, and WIGGLEZ)
Photometric redshifts
Selection of very distant galaxies at z ≫ 1
Lyman break galaxies (LBGs)
Balmer and 400nm break drop-out galaxies
Lyα emitters (LAEs)
Indirect probes: damped Lyα systems (DLAs) and gamma ray burst hosts
Dust-enshrouded galaxies
Towards an overview of the high-z galaxy population and a fair determination of the LFs
Relating distant and nearby galaxies
Bibliography