Tidal features around simulated groups and cluster galaxies: enhancement and suppression of merger events through environment in LSST-like mock observations

ABSTRACT Generally, merger likelihood increases in denser environments; however, the large relative velocities at the centres of dense clusters are expected to reduce the likelihood of mergers for satellite galaxies. Tidal features probe the recent merger histories of galaxies. The Vera C. Rubin Observatory’s Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST) will produce an unprecedented sample of tidal features around millions of galaxies. We use LSST-like mock observations of galaxies at $z\sim 0$ from the eagle, IllustrisTNG, and Magneticum Pathfinder cosmological-hydrodynamical simulations to predict the occurrence rates of tidal features around satellite galaxies across group and cluster environments in the velocity–radius projected phase–space diagram to investigate the impact of these environments on tidal feature occurrence. We find that ancient infallers in the projected phase–space exhibit a decreasing tidal feature fraction with increasing halo mass, whereas recent infallers in the projected phase–space show unchanging tidal feature fractions with halo mass. Our results show, for the first time in cosmological simulations, a suppression of tidal feature fractions in the central regions of galaxy clusters, indicating a reduced merger rate due to higher cluster-centric velocities and lower galaxy total masses in the cluster centres. Using a toy model, we show that the presence of more tidal features in the recent infaller zone and cluster outskirts suggests that tidal features occur in interactions within infalling groups and dissipate by the time they are ancient infallers, indicating a $\lesssim 3\pm 2$ Gyr survival time of tidal features within clusters.