No Arabic abstract
The aim of this paper is to characterise the abundance patterns of five iron-peak elements (Mn, Fe, Ni, Cu, and Zn) for which the stellar origin and chemical evolution are still debated. We automatically derived iron peak (Mn, Fe, Ni, Cu, and Zn) and alpha element (Mg) chemical abundances for 4666 stars. We used the bimodal distribution of [Mg/Fe] to chemically classify sample stars into different Galactic substructures: thin disc, metal-poor and high-alpha metal rich, high-alpha and low-alpha metal-poor populations. High-alpha and low-alpha metal-poor populations are fully distinct in Mg, Cu, and Zn. Thin disc trends of [Ni/Fe] and [Cu/Fe] are very similar and show a small increase at supersolar metallicities. Thin and thick disc trends of Ni and Cu are very similar and indistinguishable. Mn looks different from Ni and Cu. [Mn/Fe] trends of thin and thick discs actually have noticeable differences: the thin disc is slightly Mn richer than the thick disc. [Zn/Fe] trends look very similar to those of [alpha/Fe] trends. The dispersion of results in both discs is low (approx 0.05 dex for [Mg, Mn, and Cu/Fe]) and is even much lower for [Ni/Fe] (approx 0.035 dex). Zn is an alpha-like element and could be used to separate thin and thick disc stars. [Mn/Mg] ratio could also be a very good tool for tagging Galactic substructures. Some models can partially reproduce the observed Mg, Zn, and, Cu behaviours. Models mostly fail to reproduce Mn and Ni in all metallicity domains, however, models adopting yields normalised from solar chemical properties reproduce Mn and Ni better, suggesting that there is still a lack of realistic theoretical yields of some iron-peak elements. Very low scatter (approx 0.05 dex) in thin and thick disc sequences could provide an observational constrain for Galactic evolutionary models that study the efficiency of stellar radial migration.
We analysed the chemodynamical evolution of the Galactic disc using precise [Mg/Fe] abundances from a previous study and accurate Gaia data. For this purpose, we estimated ages and dynamical properties for 366 MSTO solar neighbourhood stars from the AMBRE Project using PARSEC isochrones together with astrometric and photometric values from Gaia DR2. We find a radial gradient of -0.099 ${pm}$ 0.031 dex kpc$^{-1}$ for [M/H] and +0.023 ${pm}$ 0.009 dex kpc for the [Mg/Fe] abundance. The steeper [Mg/Fe] gradient than that found in the literature is a result of the improvement of the AMBRE [Mg/Fe] estimates in the metal-rich regime. In addition, we find a significant spread of stellar age at any given [Mg/Fe] value, and observe a clear correlated dispersion of the [Mg/Fe] abundance with metallicity at a given age. While for [M/H] < -0.2, a clear age-[Mg/Fe] trend is observed, more metal-rich stars display ages from 3 up to 12 Gyr, describing an almost flat trend in the [Mg/Fe]-age relation. Moreover, we report the presence of radially migrated stars for a wide range of stellar ages, although we note the large uncertainties of the amplitude of the inferred change in orbital guiding radii. Finally, we observe the appearance of a second chemical sequence in the outer disc, 10-12 Gyr ago, populating the metal-poor, low-[Mg/Fe] tail. These stars are more metal-poor than the coexisting stellar population in the inner parts of the disc, and show lower [Mg/Fe] abundances than prior disc stars of the same metallicity, leading to a chemical discontinuity. Our data favour the rapid formation of an early disc that settled in the inner regions, followed by the accretion of external metal-poor gas -- probably related to a major accretion event such as the Gaia-Enceladus/Sausage one -- that may have triggered the formation of the thin disc population and steepened the abundance gradient in the early disc.
Finding solar siblings, that is, stars that formed in the same cluster as the Sun, will yield information about the conditions at the Suns birthplace. We search for solar sibling candidates in AMBRE, the very large spectra database of solar vicinity stars. Since the ages and chemical abundances of solar siblings are very similar to those of the Sun, we carried out a chemistry- and age-based search for solar sibling candidates. We used high-resolution spectra to derive precise stellar parameters and chemical abundances of the stars. We used these spectroscopic parameters together with Gaia DR2 astrometric data to derive stellar isochronal ages. Gaia data were also used to study the kinematics of the sibling candidates. From the about 17000 stars that are characterized within the AMBRE project, we first selected 55 stars whose metallicities are closest to the solar value (-0.1 < [Fe/H] < 0.1 dex). For these stars we derived precise chemical abundances of several iron-peak, alpha- and neutron-capture elements, based on which we selected 12 solar sibling candidates with average abundances and metallicities between -0.03 to 0.03 dex. Our further selection left us with 4 candidates with stellar ages that are compatible with the solar age within observational uncertainties. For the 2 of the hottest candidates, we derived the carbon isotopic ratios, which are compatible with the solar value. HD186302 is the most precisely characterized and probably the most probable candidate of our 4 best candidates. Very precise chemical characterization and age estimation is necessary to identify solar siblings. We propose that in addition to typical chemical tagging, the study of isotopic ratios can give further important information about the relation of sibling candidates with the Sun. Ideally, asteroseismic age determinations of the candidates could solve the problem of imprecise isochronal ages.
The metal abundance of the hot plasma that permeates galaxy clusters represents the accumulation of heavy elements produced by billions of supernovae. Therefore, X-ray spectroscopy of the intracluster medium provides an opportunity to investigate the nature of supernova explosions integrated over cosmic time. In particular, the abundance of the iron-peak elements (chromium, manganese, iron and nickel) is key to understanding how the progenitors of typical type Ia supernovae evolve and explode. Recent X-ray studies of the intracluster medium found that the abundance ratios of these elements differ substantially from those seen in the Sun, suggesting differences between the nature of type Ia supernovae in the clusters and in the Milky Way. However, because the K-shell transition lines of chromium and manganese are weak and those of iron and nickel are very close in photon energy, high-resolution spectroscopy is required for an accurate determination of the abundances of these elements. Here we report observations of the Perseus cluster, with statistically significant detections of the resonance emission from chromium, manganese and nickel. Our measurements, combined with the latest atomic models, reveal that these elements have near-solar abundance ratios with respect to iron, in contrast to previous claims. Comparison between our results and modern nucleosynthesis calculations disfavours the hypothesis that type Ia supernova progenitors are exclusively white dwarfs with masses well below the Chandrasekhar limit (about 1.4 times the mass of the Sun). The observed abundance pattern of the iron-peak elements can be explained by taking into account a combination of near- and sub-Chandrasekhar-mass type Ia supernova systems, adding to the mounting evidence that both progenitor types make a substantial contribution to cosmic chemical enrichment.
We present a kinematical study of 314 RR~Lyrae stars in the solar neighbourhood using the publicly available photometric, spectroscopic, and {it Gaia} DR2 astrometric data to explore their distribution in the Milky Way. We report an overdensity of 22 RR~Lyrae stars in the solar neighbourhood at a pericenter distance of between 5--9,kpc from the Galactic center. Their orbital parameters and their chemistry indicate that these 22 variables share the kinematics and the [Fe/H] values of the Galactic disc, with an average metallicity and tangential velocity of [Fe/H]=$-0.60$,dex and $v_{theta} = 241$,km,s$^{-1}$, respectively. From the distribution of the Galactocentric spherical velocity components, we find that these 22 disc-like RR~Lyrae variables are not consistent with the {it Gaia} Sausage ({it Gaia}-Enceladus), unlike almost half of the local RR~Lyrae stars. Chemical information from the literature shows that the majority of the selected pericenter peak RR~Lyrae variables are $alpha$-poor, a property shared by typically much younger stars in the thin disc. Using the available photometry we rule out a possible misclassification with the known classical and anomalous Cepheids. The similar kinematic, chemical, and pulsation properties of these disc RR~Lyrae stars suggest they share a common origin. In contrast, we find the RR~Lyrae stars associated with the {it Gaia}-Enceladus based on their kinematics and chemical composition show a considerable metallicity spread in the old population ($sim$~1,dex).
In the last three decades several hundred nearby members of young stellar moving groups (MGs) have been identified, but there has been less systematic effort to quantify or characterise young stars that do not belong to previously identified MGs. Using a kinematically unbiased sample of 225 lithium-rich stars within 100 pc, we find that only $50 pm 10$ per cent of young ($lesssim 125$ Myr), low-mass ($0.5<M/M_{odot}<1.0$) stars, are kinematically associated with known MGs. Whilst we find some evidence that six of the non-MG stars may be connected with the Lower Centaurus-Crux association, the rest form a kinematically hotter population, much more broadly dispersed in velocity, and with no obvious concentrations in space. The mass distributions of the MG members and non-MG stars is similar, but the non-MG stars may be older on average. We briefly discuss several explanations for the origin of the non-MG population.