No Arabic abstract
The dynamics of collisionless galaxy can be described by the Vlasov-Poisson system. By the Jeans theorem, all the spherically symmetric steady galaxy models are given by a distribution of {Phi}(E,L), where E is the particle energy and L the angular momentum. In a celebrated Doremus-Feix-Baumann Theorem, the galaxy model {Phi}(E,L) is stable if the distribution {Phi} is monotonically decreasing with respect to the particle energy E. On the other hand, the stability of {Phi}(E,L) remains largely open otherwise. Based on a recent abstract instability criterion of Guo-Lin, we constuct examples of unstable galaxy models of f(E,L) and f(E) in which f fails to be monotone in E.
To determine the stability and instability of a given steady galaxy configuration is one of the fundamental problems in the Vlasov theory for galaxy dynamics. In this article, we study the stability of isotropic spherical symmetric galaxy models $f_{0}(E)$, for which the distribution function $f_{0}$ depends on the particle energy $E$ only. In the first part of the article, we derive the first sufficient criterion for linear instability of $f_{0}(E):$ $f_{0}(E)$ is linearly unstable if the second-order operator [ A_{0}equiv-Delta+4piint f_{0}^{prime}(E){I-mathcal{P}}dv ] has a negative direction, where $mathcal{P}$ is the projection onto the function space ${g(E,L)},$ $L$ being the angular momentum [see the explicit formula (ref{A0-radial})]. In the second part of the article, we prove that for the important King model, the corresponding $A_{0}$ is positive definite. Such a positivity leads to the nonlinear stability of the King model under all spherically symmetric perturbations.
Submillimeter bright galaxies in the early Universe are vigorously forming stars at ~1000 times higher rate than the Milky Way. A large fraction of stars is formed in the central 1 kiloparsec region, that is comparable in size to massive, quiescent galaxies found at the peak of the cosmic star formation history, and eventually the core of giant elliptical galaxies in the present-day Universe. However, the physical and kinematic properties inside a compact starburst core are poorly understood because dissecting it requires angular resolution even higher than the Hubble Space Telescope can offer. Here we report 550 parsec-resolution observations of gas and dust in the brightest unlensed submillimeter galaxy at z=4.3. We map out for the first time the spatial and kinematic structure of molecular gas inside the heavily dust-obscured core. The gas distribution is clumpy while the underlying disk is rotation-supported. Exploiting the high-quality map of molecular gas mass surface density, we find a strong evidence that the starburst disk is gravitationally unstable, implying that the self-gravity of gas overcomes the differential rotation and the internal pressure by stellar radiation feedback. The observed molecular gas would be consumed by star formation in a timescale of 100 million years, that is comparable to those in merging starburst galaxies. Our results suggest that the most extreme starburst in the early Universe originates from efficient star formation due to a gravitational instability in the central 2 kpc region.
We compare predictions of a number of empirical models and numerical simulations of galaxy formation to the conditional stellar mass functions (CSMF)of galaxies in groups of different masses obtained recently by Lan et al. to test how well different models accommodate the data. The observational data clearly prefer a model in which star formation in low-mass halos changes behavior at a characteristic redshift $z_csim 2$. There is also tentative evidence that this characteristic redshift depends on environment, becoming $z_csim 4$ in regions that eventually evolve into rich clusters of galaxies. The constrained model is used to understand how galaxies form and evolve in dark matter halos, and to make predictions for other statistical properties of the galaxy population, such as the stellar mass functions of galaxies at high $z$, the star formation and stellar mass assembly histories in dark matter halos. A comparison of our model predictions with those of other empirical models shows that different models can make vastly different predictions, even though all of them are tuned to match the observed stellar mass functions of galaxies.
Context. Generative models open up the possibility to interrogate scientific data in a more data-driven way. Aims: We propose a method that uses generative models to explore hypotheses in astrophysics and other areas. We use a neural network to show how we can independently manipulate physical attributes by encoding objects in latent space. Methods: By learning a latent space representation of the data, we can use this network to forward model and explore hypotheses in a data-driven way. We train a neural network to generate artificial data to test hypotheses for the underlying physical processes. Results: We demonstrate this process using a well-studied process in astrophysics, the quenching of star formation in galaxies as they move from low-to high-density environments. This approach can help explore astrophysical and other phenomena in a way that is different from current methods based on simulations and observations.
We track the angular momentum transfer in n-body simulations of barred galaxies by measuring torques to understand the dynamical mechanisms responsible for the evolution of the bar-disc-dark matter halo system. We find evidence for three distinct phases of barred galaxy evolution: assembly, secular growth, and steady-state equilibrium. Using a decomposition of the disc into orbital families, we track bar mass and angular momentum through time and correlate the quantities with the phases of evolution. We follow the angular momentum transfer between particles and identify the dominant torque channels. We find that the halo model mediates the assembly and growth of the bar for a high central density halo, and the outer disc mediates the assembly and growth of the bar in a low central density halo model. Both galaxies exhibit a steady-state equilibrium phase where the bar is neither lengthening nor slowing. The steady-state equilibrium results from the balance of torque between particles that are gaining and losing angular momentum. We propose observational metrics for barred galaxies that can be used to help determine the evolutionary phase of a barred galaxy, and discuss the implications of the phases for galaxy evolution as a whole.