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Title: THE METALLICITY OF VOID DWARF GALAXIES

Abstract

The current ΛCDM cosmological model predicts that galaxy evolution proceeds more slowly in lower density environments, suggesting that voids are a prime location to search for relatively pristine galaxies that are representative of the building blocks of early massive galaxies. To test the assumption that void galaxies are more pristine, we compare the evolutionary properties of a sample of dwarf galaxies selected specifically to lie in voids with a sample of similar isolated dwarf galaxies in average density environments. We measure gas-phase oxygen abundances and gas fractions for eight dwarf galaxies (M{sub r} > –16.2), carefully selected to reside within the lowest density environments of seven voids, and apply the same calibrations to existing samples of isolated dwarf galaxies. We find no significant difference between these void dwarf galaxies and the isolated dwarf galaxies, suggesting that dwarf galaxy chemical evolution proceeds independent of the large-scale environment. While this sample is too small to draw strong conclusions, it suggests that external gas accretion is playing a limited role in the chemical evolution of these systems, and that this evolution is instead dominated mainly by the internal secular processes that are linking the simultaneous growth and enrichment of these galaxies.

Authors:
;  [1]; ;  [2]
  1. Max Planck Institut für Astronomie, Königstuhl 17, D-69117 Heidelberg (Germany)
  2. Department of Astronomy, The Ohio State University, 140 West 18th Avenue, Columbus, OH 43210 (United States)
Publication Date:
OSTI Identifier:
22364739
Resource Type:
Journal Article
Journal Name:
Astrophysical Journal Letters
Additional Journal Information:
Journal Volume: 798; Journal Issue: 1; Other Information: Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); Journal ID: ISSN 2041-8205
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
79 ASTROPHYSICS, COSMOLOGY AND ASTRONOMY; CALIBRATION; COMPARATIVE EVALUATIONS; COSMOLOGICAL CONSTANT; COSMOLOGICAL MODELS; DENSITY; ELEMENT ABUNDANCE; GALACTIC EVOLUTION; GALAXIES; METALLICITY; NONLUMINOUS MATTER; OXYGEN; UNIVERSE

Citation Formats

Kreckel, K., Groves, B., Croxall, K., Pogge, R. W., and Van de Weygaert, R., E-mail: kreckel@mpia.de. THE METALLICITY OF VOID DWARF GALAXIES. United States: N. p., 2015. Web. doi:10.1088/2041-8205/798/1/L15.
Kreckel, K., Groves, B., Croxall, K., Pogge, R. W., & Van de Weygaert, R., E-mail: kreckel@mpia.de. THE METALLICITY OF VOID DWARF GALAXIES. United States. https://doi.org/10.1088/2041-8205/798/1/L15
Kreckel, K., Groves, B., Croxall, K., Pogge, R. W., and Van de Weygaert, R., E-mail: kreckel@mpia.de. 2015. "THE METALLICITY OF VOID DWARF GALAXIES". United States. https://doi.org/10.1088/2041-8205/798/1/L15.
@article{osti_22364739,
title = {THE METALLICITY OF VOID DWARF GALAXIES},
author = {Kreckel, K. and Groves, B. and Croxall, K. and Pogge, R. W. and Van de Weygaert, R., E-mail: kreckel@mpia.de},
abstractNote = {The current ΛCDM cosmological model predicts that galaxy evolution proceeds more slowly in lower density environments, suggesting that voids are a prime location to search for relatively pristine galaxies that are representative of the building blocks of early massive galaxies. To test the assumption that void galaxies are more pristine, we compare the evolutionary properties of a sample of dwarf galaxies selected specifically to lie in voids with a sample of similar isolated dwarf galaxies in average density environments. We measure gas-phase oxygen abundances and gas fractions for eight dwarf galaxies (M{sub r} > –16.2), carefully selected to reside within the lowest density environments of seven voids, and apply the same calibrations to existing samples of isolated dwarf galaxies. We find no significant difference between these void dwarf galaxies and the isolated dwarf galaxies, suggesting that dwarf galaxy chemical evolution proceeds independent of the large-scale environment. While this sample is too small to draw strong conclusions, it suggests that external gas accretion is playing a limited role in the chemical evolution of these systems, and that this evolution is instead dominated mainly by the internal secular processes that are linking the simultaneous growth and enrichment of these galaxies.},
doi = {10.1088/2041-8205/798/1/L15},
url = {https://www.osti.gov/biblio/22364739}, journal = {Astrophysical Journal Letters},
issn = {2041-8205},
number = 1,
volume = 798,
place = {United States},
year = {Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 EST 2015},
month = {Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 EST 2015}
}