We present an analysis of the absorption-line system in the Very Large Telescope/Ultraviolet and Visual Echelle Spectrograph spectrum at a redshift of za = 3.1448 associated with the quasar SDSS J122040.23+092326.96, whose systematic redshift is ze = 3.1380 ± 0.0007, measured from the Hβ+[O iii] emission lines in our newly acquired NIR P200/TripleSpec data. This absorbing system, detected in numerous absorption lines, including the N v, N iii, C iv, C iii, Si iv, Si iii, and H i Lyman series, can be resolved into seven kinematic components with redshifted velocities ranging from 200 to 900 km s−1. The high-ionization N v doublet detected and the rather narrow Lyman series measured (b ≈ 14 km s−1) suggest that the absorption gas is photoionized, possibly by the quasar. A low density is inferred by the fact that N iiiλ989.80 is significantly detected while N iii*λ991.57 ( ) is undetectably weak. A firm lower limit of a solar value to the abundance of the gas can be set based on the measurements of Si iv and H i column densities, as first proposed by F. Hamann. Detailed photoionization simulations indicate that T1, and possibly the absorber as a whole, has metallicities of Z ∼ 1.5 − 6.0 Z☉, and is located at ∼15 kpc from the quasar nucleus. The metal-strong absorption inflows at the outskirt of the quasar host galaxy most likely originated in situ and were driven by stellar processes, such as stellar winds and/or supernova explosions. Such a relatively rare system may hold important clues to understanding the baryonic cycling of galaxies, and more cases could be picked out using relatively strong Si iv and weak Lyman absorption lines.

中文翻译：

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类星体外银河系尺度的金属强流入


我们分析了甚大望远镜/紫外和可见光阶梯光栅光谱光谱中 za = 3.1448 红移的吸收线系统，与类星体 SDSS J122040.23+092326.96 相关，其系统红移为 ze = 3.1380 ± 0.0007，从我们新获取的 NIR P200/TripleSpec 数据中的 Hβ+[O iii] 发射线测量。这种吸收系统在许多吸收线中检测到，包括 N v、N iii、C iv、C iii、Si iv、Si iii 和 H i Lyman 系列，可以分解为七个运动分量，红移速度范围为 200 至 900 km s−1。检测到的高电离 N v 双峰和测得的相当窄的莱曼级数 （b ≈ 14 km s−1） 表明吸收气体被光离子化，可能是由类星体引起的。通过显著检测到 N iiiλ989.80 而 N iii*λ991.57 （ ） 无法检测到的事实推断出低密度。太阳值与气体丰度的明确下限可以根据 Si iv 和 H i 柱密度的测量来设置，这是 F. Hamann 首次提出的。详细的光电离模拟表明，T1 以及整个吸收体的金属丰度为 Z ∼ 1.5 − 6.0 Z☉，位于距类星体核 ∼15 kpc 的位置。类星体宿主星系外围的金属强吸收流入很可能起源于原位，并由恒星风和/或超新星爆炸等恒星过程驱动。这样一个相对罕见的系统可能为理解星系的重子循环提供重要线索，使用相对较强的 Si iv 和弱的莱曼吸收线可以挑选出更多情况。