High-Density Molecular Gas in the Infrared-bright Galaxy System VV 114

New high resolution CO(3-2) interferometric map of the IR-bright interactinggalaxy system VV114 observed with the Submillimeter Array (SMA) reveal asubstantial amount of warm and dense gas in the IR-bright but opticallyobscured galaxy, VV114E, and the overlap region connecting the two nuclei. A1.8 x 1.4 kpc concentration of CO(3-2) emitting gas with a total mass of 4 x10^9 Msun coincides with the peaks of NIR, MIR, and radio continuum emissionfound previously by others, identifying the dense fuel for the AGN and/or thestarburst activity there. Extensive CO(2-1) emission is also detected,revealing detailed distribution and kinematics that are consistent with theearlier CO(1-0) results. The widely distributed molecular gas traced in CO(2-1)and the distributed discrete peaks of CO(3-2) emission suggest that a spatiallyextended intense starbursts may contribute significantly to its large IRluminosity. These new observations further support the notion that VV114 isapproaching its final stage of merger, when violent central inflow of gastriggers intense starburst activity possibly boosting the IR luminosity abovethe ultraluminous threshold.Comment: 11 pages, 2 figures, accepted for publication in ApJ