The \ion{H}{I}-rich ultra-diffuse galaxies (HUDGs) offer a unique case for studies of star formation laws (SFLs) as they host low star formation efficiency (SFE) and low-metallicity environments where gas is predominantly atomic. We collect a sample of six HUDGs in the field and investigate their location in the extended Schmidt law(ΣSFR ∝(Σstar0.5Σgas)1.09). They are consistent with this relationship well (with deviations of only 1.1 sigma). Furthermore, we find that HUDGs follow the tight correlation between the hydrostatic pressure in the galaxy mid-plane and the quantity on the x-axis (log(Σstar0.5Σgas)) of the extended Schmidt law. This result indicates that these HUDGs can be self-regulated systems that reach the dynamical and thermal equilibrium. In this framework, the stellar gravity compresses the disk vertically and counteracts the gas pressure in the galaxy mid-plane to regulate the star formation as suggested by some theoretical models.
@article{arxiv.2311.07240,
title = {The \ion{H}{I}-rich Ultra-diffuse Galaxies follow the Extended Schmidt Law},
author = {Sai Zhai and Yong Shi and Zhi-Yu Zhang and Jun-Zhi Wang and Yu Gao and Qiusheng Gu and Tao Wang and Kaiyi Du and Xiaoling Yu and Xin Li},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2311.07240},
year = {2023}
}
Comments
6 pages, 4 figures, accepted for publication in MNRAS