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Mass to Light Ratio, Initial Mass Function, and Chemical Evolution in Disk Galaxies

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 March 2013

L. Portinari*
Affiliation:
Theoretical Astrophysics Center, Juliane Maries Vej 30, DK 2100 Copenhagen Ø, Denmark
J. Sommer-Larsen
Affiliation:
Theoretical Astrophysics Center, Juliane Maries Vej 30, DK 2100 Copenhagen Ø, Denmark
R. Tantalo
Affiliation:
Dipartimento di Astronomia, Università di Padova, Vicolo dell'Osservatorio 2, I 35122 Padova, Italy
*
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Abstract

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Cosmological simulations of disk galaxy formation, when compared to the observed Tully–Fisher relation, suggest a low mass to light (M/L) ratio for the stellar component in spirals. We show that a number of 'bottom-light' initial mass functions (IMFs) suggested independently in the literature, do imply M/L ratios as low as required, at least for late type spirals (Sbc–Sc). However the typical M/L ratio, and correspondingly the zero point of the Tully–Fisher relation, is expected to vary considerably with Hubble type.

Bottom-light IMFs tend to have a metal production in excess of what is typically estimated for spiral galaxies. Suitable tuning of the IMF slope and mass limits, post-supernova fallback of metals onto black holes or metal outflows must then be invoked, to reproduce the observed chemical properties of disk galaxies.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Astronomical Society of Australia 2004

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