Composite Stellar Populations Research Articles

A library of IUE white dwarf spectra for stellar population analyses

We present high Signal to Noise ratio IUE spectra of dierent classes of white dwarfs, to be used as templates for stellar population analyses in the ultraviolet region. We present average stellar parameters associated to each group. The library contains 6 groups for DA's, 2 for DO's and 5 for DB's. We also present equivalent widths of spectral features, and continuum measurements. We call attention to the spectral characteristics which are promising indicators of the presence of white dwarfs in the spectra of composite stellar populations.

The case against bimodal star formation in elliptical galaxies

We consider the present-day photometric and chemical properties of elliptical galaxies, adopting the bimodal star formation scenario of Elbaz, Arnaud & Vangioni-Flam (1995). These models utilise an initial mass function (IMF) biased heavily toward massive stars during the early phases of galactic evolution, leading to early Type II supernovae-driven galactic winds. A subsequent lengthy, milder, star formation phase with a normal IMF ensues, responsible supposedly for the stellar population observed today. Based upon chemical evolution arguments alone, this scenario has been invoked to explain the observed metal mass, and their abundance ratios, in the intracluster medium of galaxy clusters. Building upon the recent compilations of metallicity-dependent isochrones for simple stellar populations, we have constructed a coupled photometric and chemical evolution package for composite stellar populations in order to quantify the effects of such a model upon the photo-chemical properties of the resultant elliptical galaxies. We demonstrate that these predicted properties are incompatible with those observed at the current epoch.

Population Synthesis Models

Increasingly complex population synthesis models have been developed during the last few years. Among the different authors working in the field, these groups have been particularly active: Arimoto & Yoshii (1987), Guiderdoni & Rocca-Volmerange (1987), Buzzoni (1989), Fritze-v. Alvensleben & Gerhard (1994), Bressan, Chiosi, & Fagotto (1994), Bruzual & Chariot (1993, 1995). The basic astrophysical ingredients used in these models are the stellar evolutionary tracks and the stellar spectral libraries (either empirical or theoretical). The computational algorithms are different in each set of models, but, one way or the other, these models depend on the same adjustable parametric functions: (1) the stellar initial mass function (IMF); (2) the star formation rate (SFR); and (3) the rate of chemical enrichment (in some models Z = Z⊙ = constant). Most of the recent codes use the isochrone synthesis algorithm, which allows to compute the evolution of a simple stellar population (SSP), and from it, by a convolution integral, the properties of more complex composite stellar populations (CSP).

Spectral synthesis in the ultraviolet. I - Far-ultraviolet stellar library

A library of mean stellar energy distributions for use in population synthesis of the ultraviolet spectra of active star-forming galaxies is derived from the ultraviolet spectrophotometry in the IUE Spectral Atlas. The spectra extend from 1230 to 1930 A with a resolution of 6 A. The library contains eight main-sequence groups from O3 to A7 V, four giant groups from O5 to B9 III, and three supergiant groups from O9 to A0 I. Several continuum and spectral line indices are computed, and their usefulness as temperature and luminosity discriminants is discussed. The advantages of analyzing composite stellar populations in the far-ultraviolet, where cool starlight is strongly suppressed, are examined.