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Ca II Absorbers in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey: Statistics

We present the results of a survey for CaII 3934,3969 absorption-line systems culled from ~ 95,000 Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) Data Release 7 and Data Release 9 quasar spectra. With 435 doublets identified in the catalog, this list is the largest CaII catalog compiled to date, spanning redshifts z < 1.34, which corresponds to the most recent ~ 8.9 Gyrs of the history of the Universe. We derive statistics on the CaII rest equivalent width distribution (REW) and incidence (number density per unit redshift). We find that the lambda3934 REW distribution cannot be described by a single exponential function. A double exponential function is required to produce a satisfactory description. The function can be written as a sum of weak and strong components: dn/dW = (N_wk*/W_wk*) exp(-W/W_wk*) + (N_str*/W_str*) exp(-W/W_str*). A maximum likelihood fit to the unbinned data indicates: N_wk*=0.140 +/- 0.029, W_wk*=0.165 +/- 0.020 A, N_str*=0.024 +/- 0.020, and W_str*=0.427 +/- 0.101 A. This suggests that the CaII absorbers are composed of at least two distinct populations. The incidence (product of integrated absorber cross section and their co-moving number density) of the overall CaII absorber population does not show evidence for evolution in the standard cosmology. The normalization of the no-evolution curve, i.e., the value of the CaII incidence extrapolated to redshift z=0, for lambda 3934 >= 0.3 A, is n_0=0.017 +/- 0.001. In comparison to MgII surveys, we found that only 3% of MgII systems in the SDSS have CaII, confirming that it is rare to identify CaII in quasar absorption-line surveys. We also report on some preliminary investigations of the nature of the two populations of CaII absorbers, and show that they can likely be distinguished using their MgII properties.