Feedback and outflows in galaxies that are associated with a quasar phase are expected to be pivotal in quenching the most massive galaxies. However, observations targeting the molecular outflow phase, which dominates both the mass and momentum and removes the immediate fuel for star formation, are limited in high-z QSO hosts. Massive quiescent galaxies found at z ∼ 4 are predicted to have quenched star formation already by z ∼ 5 and undergone their most intense growth at z > 6. Here, we present two Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) detections of molecular outflows, traced by blueshifted absorption of the OH 119 μm doublet, from a sample of three z > 6 infrared luminous QSO hosts: J2310+1855 and P183+05. OH 119 μm is also detected in emission from P183+05, and tentatively in the third source: P036+03. Using similar assumptions as for high-z dusty star-forming galaxy outflows, we find that our QSOs drive molecular outflows with comparable mass outflow rates, which are comparably energetic except for J2310+1855's significantly lower outflow energy flux. We do not find evidence, nor require additional input from the central active galactic nucleus (AGN) to drive the molecular outflow in J2310+1855, but we cannot rule out an AGN contribution in P183+05 if a significant AGN contribution to L _FIR is assumed and/or if the outflow covering fraction is high (≥53%), which evidence from the literature suggests is unlikely in these sources. Differences observed in the blueshifted absorption spectral properties may instead be caused by the QSO hosts’ more compact dust continuums, limiting observations to lower altitude and more central regions of the outflow.

In this erratum, we correct a mistake in the derivation of OH 119 µm equivalent width in two sources: J2310+1855 and P183+05. Consequently, we also correct the molecular gas outflow mass, mass outflow rate (MOFR), momentum flux, kinetic energy flux, and depletion times as the derivation of these values involves the equivalent width. We provide an updated version of Table 3 from the published article, and of Figures 3, 5, and 6. We no longer find significantly larger OH 119 µm absorption EWs in our unobscured QSO sources with respect to the high-z DSFGs from the literature Spilker et al. (2020a, 2020b). Furthermore, the MOFR, momentum flux, and kinetic energy of the molecular outflows in J2310+1855 and P183+05, as traced by the blueshifted OH 119 µm absorption, are now all significantly offset to lower values with respect to the trends with far-infrared (FIR) luminosity seen in high-z DSFGs (Spilker et al. 2020a, 2020b). Even with an assumed 50% contribution to the FIR luminosity from the central active nucleus, both galaxies appear to have suppressed outflow properties. The star formation rate (SFR) exceeds the MOFR in both sources and is therefore the dominant mechanism responsible for depleting the molecular gas reservoir in these systems. The original conclusion of the published article is therefore unchanged and even reinforced. We would like to thank Tom Bakx for bringing this error to our attention.

We present an Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) survey of CO(4-3) line emitting galaxies in 17 quasar fields at z ∼4 aimed at performing the first systematic search of dusty galaxies in high-z quasar environments. Our blind search of galaxies around the quasars results in five CO emitters with S/N ≥ 5.6 within a projected radius of R ∼2 1.5 h -1 cMpc and a velocity range of δv = ±1000 km s-1 around the quasar. In blank fields, we expect to detect only 0.28 CO emitters within the same volume, implying a total overdensity of 17.6-7.6+11.9 in our fields, and indicating that quasars trace massive structures in the early universe. We quantify this overdensity by measuring the small-scale clustering of CO emitters around quasars, resulting in a cross-correlation length of r0,QG=8.37-2.04+2.42h-1 cMpc, assuming a fixed slope γ = 1.8. This contradicts the reported mild overdensities (x1.4) of Lyα emitters (LAEs) in the same fields at scales of R ∼2 7 h -1 cMpc, which are well described by a cross-correlation length 3.0-1.4+1.5 times lower than that measured for CO emitters. We discuss some possibilities to explain this discrepancy, including low star formation efficiency, and excess of dust in galaxies around quasars. Finally, we constrain, for the first time, the clustering of CO emitters at z ∼4, finding an autocorrelation length of r 0,CO = 3.14 ±1.71 h -1 cMpc (with γ = 1.8). Our work, together with the previous study of LAEs around quasars, traces simultaneously the clustering properties of both optical and dusty galaxy populations in quasars fields, stressing the importance of multiwavelength studies, and highlighting important questions about galaxy properties in high-z dense environments.