COMPARISON OF ALPHA-ELEMENT-ENHANCED SIMPLE STELLAR POPULATION MODELS WITH MILKY WAY GLOBULAR CLUSTERS
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164-2814 (United States)
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, V8W 3P6 (Canada)
We present simple stellar population (SSP) models with scaled-solar and {alpha}-element-enhanced abundances. The SSP models are based on the Dartmouth Stellar Evolution Database, our library of synthetic stellar spectra, and a detailed systematic variation of horizontal-branch (HB) morphology with age and metallicity. In order to test the relative importance of a variety of SSP model ingredients, we compare our SSP models with integrated spectra of 41 Milky Way globular clusters (MWGCs) from Schiavon et al. Using the Mg b and Ca4227 indices, we confirm that Mg and Ca are enhanced by about +0.4 and +0.2 dex, respectively, in agreement with results from high-resolution spectra of individual stars in MWGCs. Balmer lines, particularly H{gamma} and H{delta}, of MWGCs are reproduced by our {alpha}-enhanced SSP models not only because of the combination of isochrone and spectral effects but also because of our reasonable HB treatment. Moreover, it is shown that the Mg abundance significantly influences Balmer and iron line indices. Finally, the investigation of power-law initial mass function (IMF) variations suggests that an IMF much shallower than Salpeter is unrealistic because the Balmer lines are too strong on the metal-poor side to be compatible with observations.
- OSTI ID:
- 21301551
- Journal Information:
- Astronomical Journal (New York, N.Y. Online), Vol. 138, Issue 5; Other Information: DOI: 10.1088/0004-6256/138/5/1442; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 1538-3881
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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