Exploring Damped Ly Alpha System Host Galaxies Using Gamma-Ray Bursts

Abstract: We present a sample of 45 Damped Ly-Alpha system [DLA; H I-N is greater than or equal to 2 x 10(exp. 20) cm(exp. -2)] counterparts (33 detections, 12 upper limits) which host gamma-ray bursts (GRB-DLAs) in order to investigate star formation and metallicity within galaxies hosting DLAs. Our sample spans z is approx. 2 – 6 and is nearly three times larger than any previously detected DLA counterparts survey based on quasar line-of-sight searches (QSO-DLAs). We report star formation rates (SFR…