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Register a new userThe Meaning and Consequences of Star Formation Criteria in Galaxy Models with Resolved Stellar Feedback
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We consider the effects of different star formation criteria on galactic scales, in high-resolution simulations with explicitly resolved GMCs and stellar feedback. We compare: (1) a self-gravity criterion (based on the local virial parameter and the assumption that self-gravitating gas collapses to high density in a free-fall time), (2) a fixed density threshold, (3) a molecular-gas law, (4) a temperature threshold, (5) a Jeans-instability requirement, (6) a criteria that cooling times be shorter than dynamical times, and (7) a convergent-flow criterion. We consider these both MW-like and high-density (starburst) galaxies. With feedback present, all models produce identical integrated star formation rates (SFRs), in agreement with the Kennicutt relation. Without feedback all produce orders-of-magnitude excessive SFRs. This is totally dependent on feedback and independent of the SF law. However, the spatial and density distribution of SF depend strongly on the SF criteria. Because cooling rates are generally fast and gas is turbulent, criteria (4)-(7) are weak and spread SF uniformly over the disk (above densities n~0.01-0.1 cm^-3). A molecular criterion (3) localizes to higher densities, but still a wide range; for Z Z_solar, it is similar to a density threshold at n~1 cm^-3 (well below mean densities in the MW center or starbursts). Fixed density thresholds (2) can always select the highest densities, but must be adjusted for simulation resolution and galaxy properties; the same threshold that works in a MW-like simulation will select nearly all gas in a starburst. Binding criteria (1) tend to adaptively select the largest over-densities, independent of galaxy model or resolution, and automatically predict clustered SF. We argue that this SF model is most physically-motivated and presents significant numerical advantages in large-dynamic range simulations.
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We use simulations with realistic models for stellar feedback to study galaxy mergers. These high resolution (1 pc) simulations follow formation and destruction of individual GMCs and star clusters. The final starburst is dominated by in situ star formation, fueled by gas which flows inwards due to global torques. The resulting high gas density results in rapid star formation. The gas is self gravitating, and forms massive (~10^10 M_sun) GMCs and subsequent super-starclusters (masses up to 10^8 M_sun). However, in contrast to some recent simulations, the bulk of new stars which eventually form the central bulge are not born in superclusters which then sink to the center of the galaxy, because feedback efficiently disperses GMCs after they turn several percent of their mass into stars. Most of the mass that reaches the nucleus does so in the form of gas. The Kennicutt-Schmidt law emerges naturally as a consequence of feedback balancing gravitational collapse, independent of the small-scale star formation microphysics. The same mechanisms that drive this relation in isolated galaxies, in particular radiation pressure from IR photons, extend over seven decades in SFR to regulate star formation in the most extreme starbursts (densities >10^4 M_sun/pc^2). Feedback also drives super-winds with large mass loss rates; but a significant fraction of the wind material falls back onto the disks at later times, leading to higher post-starburst SFRs in the presence of stellar feedback. Strong AGN feedback is required to explain sharp cutoffs in star formation rate. We compare the predicted relic structure, mass profile, morphology, and efficiency of disk survival to simulations which do not explicitly resolve GMCs or feedback. Global galaxy properties are similar, but sub-galactic properties and star formation rates can differ significantly.
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Large-scale, broad outflows are common in active galaxies. In systems where star formation coexists with an AGN, it is unclear yet the role that both play on driving the outflows. In this work we present three-dimensional radiative-cooling MHD simulations of the formation of these outflows, considering the feedback from both the AGN and supernovae-driven winds. We find that a large-opening-angle AGN wind develops fountain structures that make the expanding gas to fall back. Furthermore, it exhausts the gas near the nuclear region, extinguishing star formation and accretion within a few 100.000 yr, which establishes the duty cycle of these outflows. The AGN wind accounts for the highest speed features in the outflow with velocities around 10.000 km s$^{-1}$ (as observed in UFOs), but these are not as cold and dense as required by observations of molecular outflows. The SNe-driven wind is the main responsible for the observed mass-loading of the outflows.
Achieving a precise understanding of galaxy formation in a cosmological context is one of the great challenges in theoretical astrophysics, due to the vast range of spatial scales involved in the relevant physical processes. Observations in the millimeter bands, particularly those using the cosmic microwave background (CMB) radiation as a backlight, provide a unique probe of the thermodynamics of these processes, with the capability to directly measure the density, pressure, and temperature of ionized gas. Moreover, these observations have uniquely high sensitivity into the outskirts of the halos of galaxies and clusters, including systems at high redshift. In the next decade, the combination of large spectroscopic and photometric optical galaxy surveys and wide-field, low-noise CMB surveys will transform our understanding of galaxy formation via these probes.
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