Spectroscopy of the near-infrared afterglow of GRB 050904 at z = 6.3

Abstract

We present the optical/NIR spectrum of the afterglow of GRB 050904 obtained with the Faint Object Camera And Spectrograph on the Subaru 8.2m telescope taken 3.4 days after the burst. It is, as of June 2006, the only GRB with a known redshift larger than 6. The spectrum shows a clear continuum at the long wavelength end of the spectrum with a sharp cutoff at around 900nm due to Lyα absorption at a redshift of 6.3 with a damping wing. Little flux is present in the waveband shortward of the Lyα break. A system of absorption lines of heavy elements at redshift z = 6.295±0.002 were also detected, yielding a precise measurement of the largest known redshift of a GRB. Analysis of the silicon and sulphur absorption lines suggests a dense environment around the GRB with the metallicity larger than 0.1 solar, providing unique information on the galaxy and star forming region at z>6. This observation has shown that GRB is a powerful probe of the early universe.