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Description
In the hierarchical model of structure formation, giant elliptical galaxies form through merging processes within the highest density peaks known as protoclusters. While high-redshift radio galaxies usually pinpoint the location of these environments, we have recently discovered at z~2-3 three enormous (>200kpc) Lyman-alpha nebulae (ELANe) that host multiple active galactic nuclei (AGN) and that are surrounded by overdensities of Lyman- emitters (LAE). These regions are prime candidates for massive protoclusters in the early stages of assembly. To characterize the star-forming activity within these rare structures - both on ELAN and protocluster scales - we have initiated an observational campaign with the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope (JCMT) and the Atacama Pathfinder EXperiment (APEX) telescopes. In this paper we report on sensitive SCUBA-2/JCMT 850 and 450um observations of a 128 arcmin^2^ field comprising the ELAN MAMMOTH-1, together with the peak of the hosting BOSS1441 LAE overdensity at z=2.32. These observations unveil 4.0+/-1.3 times higher source counts at 850um with respect to blank fields, likely confirming the presence of an overdensity also in obscured tracers. We find a strong detection at 850um associated with the continuum source embedded within the ELAN MAMMOTH-1, which - together with the available data from the literature - allow us to constrain the spectral energy distribution of this source to be of an ultra-luminous infrared galaxy (ULIRG) with a far-infrared luminosity of L^SF^_FIR_=2.4^+7.4^+_-2.1_x10^12^L_{sun}_, and hosting an obscured AGN. Such a source is thus able to power a hard photoionization plus outflow scenario to explain the extended Lyman-, HeII1640; and CIV1549 emission, and their kinematics. In addition, the two brightest detections at 850um (f_850_>18mJy) sit at the density peak of the LAEs; overdensity, likely pinpointing the core of the protocluster. Future multiwavelength and spectroscopic datasets targeting the full extent of the BOSS1441 overdensity have the potential to firmly characterize a cosmic nursery of giant elliptical galaxies, and ultimately of a massive cluster.
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