Related papers: Embedded Clusters and the IMF
One of the most robust observations of the stellar initial mass function (IMF) is its near-universality in the Milky Way and neighboring galaxies. But recent observations of early-type galaxies can be interpreted to imply a bottom-heavy…
We built modelled spectra of stellar population at high resolution and with variable alpha-elements enhancements. Analysing spectra of Galactic globular clusters we show that it is possible to derive reliably and efficiently [Mg/Fe] using…
Young Moving Groups (YMGs) are close (<100pc), coherent collections of young (<100Myr) stars that appear to have formed in the same star-forming molecular cloud. As such we would expect their individual initial mass functions (IMFs) to be…
Theoretical considerations lead to the expectation that stars should not have masses larger than about m_{max*}=60-120Msun, while the observational evidence has been ambiguous. Only very recently has a physical stellar mass limit near…
(abridged) The case can be made for a rather universal stellar IMF form that can be approximated by a two-part power-law function in the stellar regime. However, there exists a possible hint for a systematic variation with metallicity. A…
Ranging from track interpolation techniques through model atmospheres to the stochastic nature of the IMF, there are many uncertainties which need to be taken into account when modelling HR diagrams or performing population synthesis,…
I shall review the latest results for the presence of diffuse light in nearby clusters, and the evidence of ongoing star formation in an intracluster Virgo field. I shall discuss how intracluster planetary nebulae can be used as excellent…
The dwarf spheroidal galaxy in Ursa Minor is apparently dark-matter dominated, and is of very low surface brightness, with total luminosity only equal to that of a globular cluster. Indeed its dominant stellar population is old and…
In this paper we present a novel method to identify and characterize stellar clusters deeply embedded in a dark molecular cloud. The method is based on measuring stellar surface density in wide-field infrared images using star counting…
(abridged) The stellar initial mass function (IMF) can be conveniently represented as a canonical two-part power law function and is largely invariant for star formation regions evident in the Local Group of galaxies. The IMF is a…
[arXiv Abridged] In this work, we explore new spatially-resolved measurements of the IMF for three edge-on lenticular galaxies in the Fornax cluster. Specifically, we utilise existing orbit-based dynamical models, which re-produce the…
The study of young massive clusters can provide key information for the formation of globular clusters, as they are often considered analogues. A currently unanswered question in this field is how long these massive clusters remain embedded…
Over the past years observations of young and populous star clusters have shown that the stellar IMF appears to be an invariant featureless Salpeter power-law with an exponent alpha=2.35 for stars more massive than a few Msun. A consensus…
Stars formed in galaxy cluster potential wells must be responsible for the high level of enrichment measured in the intracluster medium (ICM); however, there is increasing tension between this truism and the parsimonious assumption that the…
We determine the initial mass function (IMF) of the ``thin disk'' by means of a direct comparison between synthetic stellar samples (for different matching choices of IMF, star formation rate SFR and depletion) and a complete…
Laboratory experiments, large-scale computer simulations and observational cosmology have begun to make progress in the campaign to identify the particle responsible for gravitationally-inferred dark matter. In this contribution we discuss…
The recent finding that the IGIMF (integrated galaxial initial stellar mass function) composed of all newly formed stars in all young star clusters has, in dependence of the SFR, a steeper slope in the high mass regime than the underlying…
Context: The determination of the stellar initial mass function (IMF) of massive galaxies is one of the open problems in cosmology. Strong gravitational lensing is one of the few methods that allow us to constrain the IMF outside of the…
Recent papers have found that the inferred slope of the high-mass ($>1.5$ M$_\odot$) IMF for field stars in the solar vicinity has a larger value ($\sim 1.7-2.1$) than the slopes ($\sim 1.2-1.7$; Salpeter= 1.35) inferred from numerous…
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…