INSIGHTS ON THE STELLAR MASS-METALLICITY RELATION FROM THE CALIFA SURVEY

Journal Article · Sun Aug 10 00:00:00 EDT 2014 · Astrophysical Journal Letters

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1088/2041-8205/791/1/L16· OSTI ID:22365362

González Delgado, R. M.; García-Benito, R.; Pérez, E.; Cortijo-Ferrero, C.; López Fernández, R.; Sánchez, S. F. ^[1]; Cid Fernandes, R.; De Amorim, A. L.; Lacerda, E. A. D.; Vale Asari, N. ^[2]; Alves, J. ^[3]; Bland-Hawthorn, J. ^[4]; Galbany, L. ^[5]; Gallazzi, A. ^[6]; Husemann, B. ^[7]; Bekeraite, S. ^[8]; Jungwiert, B. ^[9]; López-Sánchez, A. R. ^[10]; De Lorenzo-Cáceres, A. ^[11]; Marino, R. A. ^[12] ; others, and

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1. Instituto de Astrofísica de Andalucía (CSIC), Glorieta de la Astronomía s/n, E-18008 Granada (Spain)
2. Departamento de Física, Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, P.O. Box 476, 88040-900 Florianópolis, SC (Brazil)
3. University of Vienna, Türkenschanzstrasse 17, A-1180 Vienna (Austria)
4. Sydney Institute for Astronomy, The University of Sydney, NSW 2006 (Australia)
5. Millennium Institute of Astrophysics and Departamento de Astronomía, Universidad de Chile, Casilla 36-D, Santiago (Chile)
6. INAF—Osservatorio Astrofisico di Arcetri, Largo Enrico Fermi 5, I-50125 Firenze (Italy)
7. European Southern Observatory, Karl-Schwarzschild-Strasse 2, D-85748 Garching b. München (Germany)
8. Leibniz-Institut für Astrophysik Potsdam, An der Sternwarte 16, D-14482 Potsdam (Germany)
9. Astronomical Institute of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, v.v.i., Bocni II 1401, 14131 Prague (Czech Republic)
10. Australian Astronomical Observatory, P.O. Box 915, North Ryde, NSW 1670 (Australia)
11. School of Physics and Astronomy, University of St. Andrews, North Haugh, St. Andrews, KY16 9SS (United Kingdom)
12. CEI Campus Moncloa, UCM-UPM, Departamento de Astrofísica y CC. de la Atmósfera, Facultad de CC. Físicas, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Avda. Complutense s/n, E-28040 Madrid (Spain)

We use spatially and temporally resolved maps of stellar population properties of 300 galaxies from the CALIFA integral field survey to investigate how the stellar metallicity (Z {sub *}) relates to the total stellar mass (M {sub *}) and the local mass surface density (μ{sub *}) in both spheroidal- and disk-dominated galaxies. The galaxies are shown to follow a clear stellar mass-metallicity relation (MZR) over the whole 10{sup 9}-10{sup 12} M {sub ☉} range. This relation is steeper than the one derived from nebular abundances, which is similar to the flatter stellar MZR derived when we consider only young stars. We also find a strong relation between the local values of μ{sub *} and Z {sub *} (the μZR), betraying the influence of local factors in determining Z {sub *}. This shows that both local (μ{sub *}-driven) and global (M {sub *}-driven) processes are important in determining metallicity in galaxies. We find that the overall balance between local and global effects varies with the location within a galaxy. In disks, μ{sub *} regulates Z {sub *}, producing a strong μZR whose amplitude is modulated by M {sub *}. In spheroids it is M {sub *} that dominates the physics of star formation and chemical enrichment, with μ{sub *} playing a minor, secondary role. These findings agree with our previous analysis of the star formation histories of CALIFA galaxies, which showed that mean stellar ages are mainly governed by surface density in galaxy disks and by total mass in spheroids.

• OSTI ID: 22365362
• Journal Information: Astrophysical Journal Letters, Vol. 791, Issue 1; Other Information: Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 2041-8205
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

79 ASTROPHYSICS
COSMOLOGY AND ASTRONOMY
DENSITY
GALAXIES
MASS
METALLICITY
SPHEROIDS
STAR EVOLUTION
STARS
SURFACES