An Observational Perspective of the IMF: Progress and Challenges
Abstract
The stellar initial mass function (IMF) is a fundamental astrophysical quantity that impacts a wide range of astrophysical problems from heavy element distribution to galactic evolution to planetary system formation. However, the origin and universality of the IMF are hotly debated both observationally and theoretically. I review recent observations of the IMF across a variety of environments. These suggest the IMF is surprisingly invariant between star-forming regions, star clusters, and spiral galaxies but that it may also vary under extreme conditions, including within the Galactic center and early type galaxies.
Keywords
Cite
@article{arxiv.1510.06027,
title = {An Observational Perspective of the IMF: Progress and Challenges},
author = {S. S. R. Offner},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1510.06027},
year = {2017}
}
Comments
8 pages, 3 figures, invited talk at IAU Symposium 315 "From interstellar clouds to star-forming galaxies: universal processes?"