Related papers: A simple model for the size-evolution of elliptica…
In their evolution, star-forming galaxies are known to follow scaling relations between some fundamental physical quantities, such as the mass-metallicity and the main sequence relations. We aim at studying the evolution of galaxies that,…
The luminosity dependence of kinematical and isophotal properties of elliptical galaxies is investigated using numerical simulations of galaxy merging, combined with semi-analytical models of hierarchical structure formation. Mergers of…
We report the results of a comprehensive study of the relationship between galaxy size, stellar mass and specific star-formation rate (sSFR) at redshifts 1.3<z<1.5. Based on a mass complete (M_star >= 6x10^10 Msun), spectroscopic sample…
We analyze 40 cosmological re-simulations of individual massive galaxies with present-day stellar masses of $M_{*} > 6.3 \times 10^{10} M_{\odot}$ in order to investigate the physical origin of the observed strong increase in galaxy sizes…
A review of the present observational and theoretical status of elliptical galaxies is presented with the aim to clarify whether the monolithic or the hierarchical, is a more viable scenario for the origin of these structures. We describe…
How elliptical galaxies form is a key question in observational cosmology. While the formation of massive ellipticals is strongly linked to mergers, the low mass (Mstar < 10^9.5 MSun) regime remains less well explored. In particular,…
Star formation in elliptical galaxies (Es) was and is mostly dominated by mergers and accretions with many suggestive examples seen among local galaxies. Present day star formation in Es is easily measurable in two thirds of Es and appears…
We present results of a statistical study of the cosmic evolution of the mass dependent major-merger rate since z=1. A stellar mass limited sample of close major-merger pairs (the CPAIR sample) was selected from the archive of the COSMOS…
The effects of dry and wet merging on the Scaling Laws (SLs) of elliptical galaxies (Es) are discussed. It is found that the galaxy SLs, possibly established at high redshift by the fast collapse of gas-rich and clumpy stellar distributions…
In a sample of about 45,700 early-type galaxies extracted from SDSS, we find that the shape, normalization, and dispersion around the mean size-stellar mass relation is the same for young and old systems, provided the stellar mass is…
Dry (i.e. dissipationless) merging has been proposed as the main driver of the observed size evolution of early-type galaxies (ETGs). The actual role of this mechanism is questioned by the tightness of the local stellar mass-size relation…
The simple reading of the evidence is that the large elliptical galaxies existed at about the present star mass and comoving number density at redshift z=2. This is subject to the usual uncertainties of measurement and interpretation in…
Several studies have tried to ascertain whether or not the increase in abundance of the early-type galaxies (E-S0a's) with time is mainly due to major mergers, reaching opposite conclusions. We have tested it directly through…
The evolution of the galaxy stellar mass function is especially useful to test the current model of galaxy formation. Observational data have revealed a few inconsistencies with predictions from the $\Lambda {\rm CDM}$ model. For example,…
For the same stellar mass, physically smaller star-forming galaxies are also metal richer (Ellison et al. 2008). What causes the relation remains unclear. The central star-forming galaxies in the EAGLE cosmological numerical simulation…
We measure the mass growth rate by merging for a wide range of galaxy types. We present the small-scale (0.014 < r < 11 h70^{-1} Mpc) projected cross-correlation functions w(rp) of galaxy subsamples from the spectroscopic sample of the NYU…
Dedicated photometric and spectroscopic surveys have provided unambiguous evidence for a strong stellar mass-size evolution of galaxies within the last 10 Gyr. The likely progenitors of today's most massive galaxies are remarkably small,…
The discovery of a population of massive, compact and quiescent early-type galaxies has changed the view on plausible formation scenarios for the present day population of elliptical galaxies. Traditionally assumed formation histories…
We measure galaxy sizes on a sample of $\sim1200$ galaxies with confirmed spectroscopic redshifts $2 \leq z_{spec} \leq 4.5$ in the VIMOS Ultra Deep Survey (VUDS), representative of star-forming galaxies with $i_\mathrm{AB} \leq 25$. We…
We study resolution effects in numerical simulations of gas-rich and gas-poor major mergers, and show that the formation of slowly-rotating elliptical galaxies often requires a resolution that is beyond the present-day standards to be…