A Minimalist Feedback-Regulated Model for Galaxy Formation During the Epoch of Reionization

Near-infrared surveys have now determined the luminosity functions of galaxies at 6<z<9 to impressive precision and identified a number of candidates at even earlier times. Here we develop a simple analytic model to describe these populations that allows physically-motivated extrapolation to earlier times and fainter luminosities. We assume that galaxies grow through accretion onto dark matter halos, which we model by matching halos at fixed number density across redshift, and that stellar feedback limits the star formation rate. We allow for a variety of feedback mechanisms, including regulation through supernova energy and momentum from radiation pressure. We show that reasonable choices for the feedback parameters can fit the available galaxy data, which in turn substantially limits the range of plausible extrapolations of the luminosity function to earlier times and fainter luminosities: for example, the global star formation rate declines rapidly at z>10, but the bright galaxies accessible to observations decline much faster than the total. Deviations from our predictions would provide evidence for new astrophysics within the first generations of galaxies. We also provide predictions for galaxy measurements by future facilities, including JWST and WFIRST.