The stellar masses and specific star-formation rates of submillimetre
  galaxies
  Establishing the stellar masses (M*), and hence specific star-formation rates
(sSFRs) of submillimetre galaxies (SMGs) is crucial for determining their role
in the cosmic galaxy/star formation. However, there is as yet no consensus over
the typical M* of SMGs. Specifically, even for the same set of SMGs, the
reported average M* have ranged over an order of magnitude, from ~5x10^10 Mo to
~5x10^11 Mo. Here we study how different methods of analysis can lead to such
widely varying results. We find that, contrary to recent claims in the
literature, potential contamination of IRAC 3-8 um photometry from hot dust
associated with an active nucleus is not the origin of the published
discrepancies in derived M*. Instead, we expose in detail how inferred M*
depends on assumptions made in the photometric fitting, and quantify the
individual and cumulative effects of different choices of initial mass
function, different brands of evolutionary synthesis models, and different
forms of assumed star-formation history. We review current observational
evidence for and against these alternatives as well as clues from the
hydrodynamical simulations, and conclude that, for the most justifiable choices
of these model inputs, the average M* of SMGs is ~2x10^11 Mo. We also confirm
that this number is perfectly reasonable in the light of the latest
measurements of their dynamical masses, and the evolving M* function of the
overall galaxy population. M* of this order imply that the average sSFR of SMGs
is comparable to that of other star-forming galaxies at z>2, at 2-3 Gyr^-1.
This supports the view that, while rare outliers may be found at any M*, most
SMGs simply form the top end of the main-sequence of star-forming galaxies at
these redshifts. Conversely, this argues strongly against the viewpoint that
SMGs are extreme pathological objects, of little relevance in the cosmic
history of star-formation.
