From ESO VLT/FLAMES/GIRAFFE spectra, abundance measurements of Zn have been made in ≈100 individual red giant branch (RGB) stars in the Sculptor dwarf spheroidal galaxy. This is the largest sample of individual Zn abundance measurements within a stellar system beyond the Milky Way. In the observed metallicity range, −2.7≤[Fe/H]≤−0.9, the general trend of Zn abundances in Sculptor is similar to that of α-elements. That is, super-solar abundance ratios of [Zn/Fe] at low metallicities, which decrease with increasing [Fe/H], eventually reaching subsolar values. However, at the higher metallicities in Sculptor, [Fe/H]≳−1.8, we find a significant scatter, −0.8≲[Zn/Fe]≲+0.4, which is not seen in any α-element. Our results are consistent with previous observations of a limited number of stars in Sculptor and in other dwarf galaxies. These results suggest that zinc has a complex nucleosynthetic origin, behaving neither completely like an α- nor an iron-peak element.
@article{arxiv.1708.00511,
title = {Zinc in the Sculptor dwarf spheroidal galaxy},
author = {Ása Skúladóttir and Eline Tolstoy and Stefania Salvadori and Vanessa Hill and Max Pettini},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1708.00511},
year = {2017}
}