CHEMICAL SIGNATURES OF THE FIRST GALAXIES: CRITERIA FOR ONE-SHOT ENRICHMENT
We utilize metal-poor stars in the local, ultra-faint dwarf galaxies (UFDs; L [subscript tot] ≤ 10[superscript 5] L [subscript ☉]) to empirically constrain the formation process of the first galaxies. Since UFDs have much simpler star formation histories than the halo of the Milky Way, their stellar...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | en_US |
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IOP Publishing
2014
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| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/88430 https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2139-7145 |
| _version_ | 1826215948190744576 |
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| author | Bromm, Volker Frebel, Anna L. |
| author2 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Physics |
| author_facet | Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Physics Bromm, Volker Frebel, Anna L. |
| author_sort | Bromm, Volker |
| collection | MIT |
| description | We utilize metal-poor stars in the local, ultra-faint dwarf galaxies (UFDs; L [subscript tot] ≤ 10[superscript 5] L [subscript ☉]) to empirically constrain the formation process of the first galaxies. Since UFDs have much simpler star formation histories than the halo of the Milky Way, their stellar populations should preserve the fossil record of the first supernova (SN) explosions in their long-lived, low-mass stars. Guided by recent hydrodynamical simulations of first galaxy formation, we develop a set of stellar abundance signatures that characterize the nucleosynthetic history of such an early system if it was observed in the present-day universe. Specifically, we argue that the first galaxies are the product of chemical "one-shot" events, where only one (long-lived) stellar generation forms after the first, Population III, SN explosions. Our abundance criteria thus constrain the strength of negative feedback effects inside the first galaxies. We compare the stellar content of UFDs with these one-shot criteria. Several systems (Ursa Major II, and also Coma Berenices, Bootes I, Leo IV, Segue 1) largely fulfill the requirements, indicating that their high-redshift predecessors did experience strong feedback effects that shut off star formation. We term the study of the entire stellar population of a dwarf galaxy for the purpose of inferring details about the nature and origin of the first galaxies "dwarf galaxy archaeology." This will provide clues to the connection of the first galaxies, the surviving, metal-poor dwarf galaxies, and the building blocks of the Milky Way. |
| first_indexed | 2024-09-23T16:40:01Z |
| format | Article |
| id | mit-1721.1/88430 |
| institution | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
| language | en_US |
| last_indexed | 2024-09-23T16:40:01Z |
| publishDate | 2014 |
| publisher | IOP Publishing |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | mit-1721.1/884302022-10-03T07:27:44Z CHEMICAL SIGNATURES OF THE FIRST GALAXIES: CRITERIA FOR ONE-SHOT ENRICHMENT Bromm, Volker Frebel, Anna L. Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Physics MIT Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research Frebel, Anna L. We utilize metal-poor stars in the local, ultra-faint dwarf galaxies (UFDs; L [subscript tot] ≤ 10[superscript 5] L [subscript ☉]) to empirically constrain the formation process of the first galaxies. Since UFDs have much simpler star formation histories than the halo of the Milky Way, their stellar populations should preserve the fossil record of the first supernova (SN) explosions in their long-lived, low-mass stars. Guided by recent hydrodynamical simulations of first galaxy formation, we develop a set of stellar abundance signatures that characterize the nucleosynthetic history of such an early system if it was observed in the present-day universe. Specifically, we argue that the first galaxies are the product of chemical "one-shot" events, where only one (long-lived) stellar generation forms after the first, Population III, SN explosions. Our abundance criteria thus constrain the strength of negative feedback effects inside the first galaxies. We compare the stellar content of UFDs with these one-shot criteria. Several systems (Ursa Major II, and also Coma Berenices, Bootes I, Leo IV, Segue 1) largely fulfill the requirements, indicating that their high-redshift predecessors did experience strong feedback effects that shut off star formation. We term the study of the entire stellar population of a dwarf galaxy for the purpose of inferring details about the nature and origin of the first galaxies "dwarf galaxy archaeology." This will provide clues to the connection of the first galaxies, the surviving, metal-poor dwarf galaxies, and the building blocks of the Milky Way. Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory (Clay Postdoctoral Fellowship) 2014-07-18T13:27:09Z 2014-07-18T13:27:09Z 2012-10 2011-03 Article http://purl.org/eprint/type/JournalArticle 0004-637X 1538-4357 http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/88430 Frebel, Anna, and Volker Bromm. “CHEMICAL SIGNATURES OF THE FIRST GALAXIES: CRITERIA FOR ONE-SHOT ENRICHMENT.” The Astrophysical Journal 759, no. 2 (November 10, 2012): 115. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2139-7145 en_US http://dx.doi.org/10.1088/0004-637x/759/2/115 The Astrophysical Journal Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/ application/pdf IOP Publishing arXiv |
| spellingShingle | Bromm, Volker Frebel, Anna L. CHEMICAL SIGNATURES OF THE FIRST GALAXIES: CRITERIA FOR ONE-SHOT ENRICHMENT |
| title | CHEMICAL SIGNATURES OF THE FIRST GALAXIES: CRITERIA FOR ONE-SHOT ENRICHMENT |
| title_full | CHEMICAL SIGNATURES OF THE FIRST GALAXIES: CRITERIA FOR ONE-SHOT ENRICHMENT |
| title_fullStr | CHEMICAL SIGNATURES OF THE FIRST GALAXIES: CRITERIA FOR ONE-SHOT ENRICHMENT |
| title_full_unstemmed | CHEMICAL SIGNATURES OF THE FIRST GALAXIES: CRITERIA FOR ONE-SHOT ENRICHMENT |
| title_short | CHEMICAL SIGNATURES OF THE FIRST GALAXIES: CRITERIA FOR ONE-SHOT ENRICHMENT |
| title_sort | chemical signatures of the first galaxies criteria for one shot enrichment |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/88430 https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2139-7145 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT brommvolker chemicalsignaturesofthefirstgalaxiescriteriaforoneshotenrichment AT frebelannal chemicalsignaturesofthefirstgalaxiescriteriaforoneshotenrichment |