Related papers: Evidence for a Non-Uniform Initial Mass Function i…

The Initial Mass Function (IMF) of early-type galaxies (ETGs) has been found to feature systematic variations by both dynamical and spectroscopic studies. In particular, spectral line strengths, based on gravity-sensitive features, suggest…

The measured star-formation rates (SFRs) of galaxies comprise an important constraint on galaxy evolution and also on their cosmological boundary conditions. Any available tracer of the SFR depends on the shape of the mass-distribution of…

Few topics in astronomy initiate such vigorous discussion as whether or not the initial mass function (IMF) of stars is universal, or instead sensitive to the initial conditions of star formation. The distinction is of critical importance:…

Any predictive theory of star formation must explain observed variations (or lack thereof) in the initial mass function. Recent work suggests that we might expect quantitative variations in the IMF as a function of metallicity (Larson 2005)…

Theoretical arguments and indirect observational evidence suggest that the stellar initial mass function (IMF) may evolve with time, such that it is more weighted toward high mass stars at higher redshift. Here we test this idea by…

The distribution of stellar masses that form in one star-formation event in a given volume of space is called the initial mass function (IMF). The IMF has been estimated from low-mass brown dwarfs to very massive stars. Combining IMF…

The observed brightness of the Tully-Fisher relation suggests a low stellar M/L ratio and a "bottom-light" IMF in disc galaxies, but the corresponding efficiency of chemical enrichment tends to exceed the observational estimates. Either…

The stellar initial mass function (IMF) is a fundamental property in the measurement of stellar masses and galaxy star formation histories. In this work we focus on the most massive galaxies in the nearby universe…

The rotation curves of low surface brightness (LSB) galaxies suggest that they possess significantly higher mass-to-light (M/L) ratios than their high surface brightness counterparts, indicating that LSB galaxies may be dark matter…

The stellar initial mass function (IMF) is a fundamental property of star formation, offering key insight into the physics driving the process as well as informing our understanding of stellar populations, their by-products, and their…

I present a comparison between published dynamical (ATLAS3D) and spectroscopic (Conroy & van Dokkum) constraints on the stellar initial mass function (IMF) in early-type galaxies, using the 34 galaxies in common between the two works. Both…

The stellar initial mass function (IMF) describes the distribution of stellar masses that form in a given star formation event. The long main-sequence lifetimes of low-mass stars mean that the IMF in this regime (below $\sim 1…

The debate about the universality of the stellar initial mass function (IMF) revolves around two competing lines of evidence. While measurements in the Milky Way, an archetypal spiral galaxy, seem to support an invariant IMF, the observed…

Several recent observational studies have concluded that the initial mass function (IMF) of stars varies systematically with galaxy properties such as velocity dispersion. In this paper, we investigate the effect of linking the circular…

Large high-quality samples of HII regions and their parent Giant Molecular Clouds (GMC) are now available for local galaxies. It is therefore possible to investigate links between the CO and H$\alpha$ luminosity functions and whether…

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…

The dependence of the stellar initial mass function (IMF) on star-formation environment, particularly at low metallicities and high redshifts, remains poorly constrained. Ultra-faint dwarf galaxies (UFDs) are local fossils of high-redshift…

The long-standing assumption that the stellar initial mass function (IMF) is universal has recently been challenged by a number of observations. Several studies have shown that a "heavy" IMF (e.g., with a Salpeter-like abundance of low mass…

The H alpha equivalent width (EW) is the ratio of the H alpha flux to the continuum at 6565{\AA}. In normal star forming galaxies the H alpha flux is dominated by reprocessed photons from stars with masses greater than 10 M_o and the…

We present new evidence for a variable stellar initial mass function (IMF) in massive early-type galaxies, using high-resolution, near-infrared spectroscopy from the Folded-port InfraRed Echellette spectrograph (FIRE) on the Magellan Baade…