Related papers: The metallicity dependence of the stellar initial …
The hypothesis of a universal initial mass function (IMF) -- motivated by observations in nearby stellar systems -- has been recently challenged by the discovery of a systematic variation of the IMF with the central velocity dispersion,…
Interstellar chemistry is important for galaxy formation, as it determines the rate at which gas can cool, and enables us to make predictions for observable spectroscopic lines from ions and molecules. We explore two central aspects of…
We review current theories for the origin of the Stellar Initial Mass Function (IMF) with particular focus on the extent to which the IMF can be considered universal across various environments. To place the issue in an observational…
We examine the cosmic evolution of a stellar initial mass function (IMF) in galaxies that varies with the Jeans mass in the interstellar medium, paying particular attention to the K-band stellar mass to light ratio (M/L_K) of present-epoch…
Star formation rates (SFR) larger than 1000 Msun/ yr are observed in extreme star bursts. This leads to the formation of star clusters with masses > 10^6 Msun in which crowding of the pre-stellar cores may lead to a change of the stellar…
The alpha element to iron peak element ratio, for example [Mg/Fe], is a commonly applied indicator of the galaxy star formation timescale (SFT) since the two groups of elements are mainly produced by different types of supernovae that…
The metal content of galaxies provides a window into their formation in the full context of the cosmic baryon cycle. In this study, we examine the relationship between stellar mass and stellar metallicity (${\rm MZ}_*{\rm R}$) in the…
We use a series of magnetohydrodynamic simulations including both radiative and protostellar outflow feedback to study the environmental variation of the initial mass function. The simulations represent a carefully-controlled experiment…
Recent observations of globular clusters (GCs) suggest that elemental abundance variations may exist between first-generation (1G) stars. We propose that metal abundance ('metallicity') spreads within GC forming giant molecular clouds…
Theoretical and indirect observational evidences suggest that stellar initial mass function (IMF) increases with redshift. On the other hand star formation rates (SFR) may be as high as 100 $M_{\odot}$ yr$^{-1}$ in star burst galaxies.…
Metallicity appears to be one the most important tool to study formation and evolution of galaxies. Recently, we have shown that metallicity of local galaxies is tightly related not only to stellar mass, but also to star formation rate…
The stellar initial mass function (IMF) is among the most fundamental distributions in astrophysics, defined as the mass spectrum of stars produced in a single star-formation event. Even in the solar neighbourhood, where measurements can be…
Star formation in the early Universe has left its imprint on the chemistry of observable stars in galaxies. We derive elemental abundances and the slope of the low-mass end of the initial mass function (IMF) for a sample of 25 very massive…
The stellar initial mass function (sIMF) describes the distribution of stellar masses formed in a single star formation event in a molecular cloud clump. It is fundamental to astrophysics and cosmology, shaping our understanding of…
The combination of a finite time-scale for star formation, rapid early stellar evolution and rapid stellar-dynamical processes imply that the stellar IMF cannot be inferred for any star cluster independently of its age (the Cluster IMF…
Context. Stellar feedback regulates star formation and shapes the interstellar medium, yet its role during the collapse of molecular clouds remains uncertain over a wide range of initial conditions. Aims. We explore how stellar winds and…
We explore the minimal conditions which enable the formation of metal-enriched solar and sub-solar mass stars. We find that in the absence of dust grains, gas fragmentation occurs at densities nH ~ [10^4-10^5]cm^{-3} when the metallicity…
In this paper we investigate whether the stellar initial mass function of early-type galaxies depends on their host environment. To this purpose, we have selected a sample of early-type galaxies from the SPIDER catalogue, characterized…
We examine the impact of various Initial Mass Function (IMF) sampling and supernova (SN) feedback injection methods on the star formation and metal enrichment histories of Ultra-Faint Dwarf (UFD) galaxy analogs. These analogs, characterized…
The stellar initial mass functions (IMFs) for the Galactic bulge, the Milky Way, other galaxies, clusters of galaxies, and the integrated stars in the Universe are composites from countless individual IMFs in star clusters and associations…