Abstract

Invited Talk - Plenary

Wednesday, 15 September 2021, 11:30

The birth of the first massive galaxies and black holes

Eduardo Bañados
MPIA Heidelberg

We are the first generation of human beings able to directly observe and study the cosmic era when the first galaxies and black holes formed. Quasars are among the most luminous sources known and can be studied in detail even during the first billion years of the Universe (at redshifts z>6). I will summarize my efforts to search for and characterize the most distant quasars. This has led to the discovery of the largest number of bright quasars at z>6, the first evidence of kpc-scale radio jets at z~6, the most distant radio-source known at z~7, and the three most distant quasars known at z>7.5. These quasars are ideal laboratories to study the build-up of the first massive galaxies and black holes and the onset of small- and large-scale structures in the early Universe. I will review the diverse range of physical properties of these quasars, their host galaxies, and their environments including follow-up studies from X-rays to radio wavelengths.