Exploring bar fractions: a comparative study of galaxy pairs and single galaxies

Abstract

We present a comprehensive analysis of barred galaxies within two distinct samples: isolated single galaxies (SIG) and isolated galaxy pairs (SIP), drawn from the SDSS-based catalog of isolated galaxies and the catalog of isolated galaxy pair limited to M ≤ −18.5, respectively. Our primary aim is to investigate the influence of tidal effects on the bar fraction (f bar ) across various galaxy systems. Barred galaxies are identified through automated ellipse fitting analysis supplemented by visual inspection of r-band imaging. A strong correlation between f bar and both galaxy morphological type and star formation rate has been revealed. Although, barred galaxies represent a nearly equal percentage of 52% in SIG and 51% in SIP, we found a little evidence for the tidal dependence of bar formation where a notable increase in the f bar is observed among galaxies characterized by larger projected separation and higher radial velocity difference between the pair members. In SIGs, we observe a prevalent increasing trend of f bar with galaxy mass, contrasting the observed decrease in f bar with increasing galaxy mass in SIPs. This discrepancy is consistent with typical trends of weaker bars, suggesting that tidal effect may attenuate the strength of bar structures within galaxy pairs.