"Simulating Merging Galaxies: The Infrared View"
The key interface between simulations and observations of merging galaxies are radiative transfer calculations that produce the emergent spectral energy distributions of these systems. I use radiative transer calculations through the outputs of SPH galaxy merger simulations to explain observed photometric properties of local bright infrared galaxies, and suggest an evolutionary model for high redshift submillimeter galaxies. I also show that our calculations can recover the demographics of local infrared bright galaxies. I predict the redshift evolution of infrared luminosity functions of merging galaxies, which will be observationally determined soon by Spitzer.