3,830 research outputs found
The lithium isotope ratio in the metal-poor halo star G271-162 from VLT/UVES observations
A high resolution (R = 110.000), very high S/N (>600) spectrum of the
metal-poor turnoff star G271-162 has been obtained in connection with the
commissioning of UVES at VLT/Kueyen. Using both 1D hydrostatic and 3D
hydrodynamical model atmospheres, the lithium isotope ratio has been estimated
from the LiI 670.8 nm line by means of spectral synthesis. The necessary
stellar line broadening (1D: macroturbulence + rotation, 3D: rotation) has been
determined from unblended KI, CaI and FeI lines. The 3D line profiles agree
very well with the observed profiles, including the characteristic line
asymmetries. Both the 1D and 3D analyses reveal a possible detection of 6Li in
G271-162, 6Li/7Li = 0.02 +-0.01 (one sigma). It is discussed if the smaller
amount of 6Li in G271-162 than in the similar halo star HD84937 could be due to
differences in stellar mass and/or metallicity or whether it may reflect an
intrinsic scatter of the Li isotope ratio in the ISM at a given metallicity.Comment: 5 pages with 6 figures. Accepted as a letter in A&
O/Fe in metal-poor main sequence and subgiant stars
A study of the O/Fe ratio in metal-poor main sequence and subgiant stars is
presented using the [OI] 6300A line, the OI 7774A triplet, and a selection of
weak FeII lines observed on high-resolution spectra acquired with the VLT UVES
spectrograph. The [OI] line is detected in the spectra of 18 stars with -0.5 <
[Fe/H] < -2.4, and the triplet is observed for 15 stars with [Fe/H] ranging
from -1.0 to -2.7. The abundance analysis was made first using standard model
atmospheres taking into account non-LTE effects on the triplet: the [OI] line
and the triplet give consistent results with [O/Fe] increasing quasi-linearly
with decreasing [Fe/H] reaching [O/Fe] ~ +0.7 at [Fe/H] = -2.5. When
hydrodynamical model atmospheres representing stellar granulation in dwarf and
subgiant stars replace standard models, the [O/Fe] from the [OI] and FeII lines
is decreased by an amount which increases with decreasing [Fe/H]. The [O/Fe] vs
[Fe/H] relation remains quasi-linear extending to [O/Fe] ~ +0.5 at [Fe/H] =
-2.5, but with a tendency of a plateau with [O/Fe] ~ +0.3 for -2.0 < [Fe/H] <
-1.0, and a hint of cosmic scatter in [O/Fe] at [Fe/H] ~ -1.0. Use of the
hydrodynamical models disturbs the broad agreement between the oxygen
abundances from the [OI], OI, and OH lines, but 3D non-LTE effects may serve to
erase these differences.Comment: ps file, 18 pages (including 10 figures) - Accepted for publication
in A&
Carbon and oxygen in metal-poor halo stars
Carbon and oxygen are key tracers of the Galactic chemical evolution; in
particular, a reported upturn in [C/O] towards decreasing [O/H] in metal-poor
halo stars could be a signature of nucleosynthesis by massive Population III
stars. We reanalyse carbon, oxygen, and iron abundances in thirty-nine
metal-poor turn-off stars. For the first time, we take into account
three-dimensional (3D) hydrodynamic effects together with departures from local
thermodynamic equilibrium (LTE) when determining both the stellar parameters
and the elemental abundances, by deriving effective temperatures from 3D
non-LTE H profiles, surface gravities from Gaia parallaxes, iron
abundances from 3D LTE Feii equivalent widths, and carbon and oxygen abundances
from 3D non-LTE Ci and Oi equivalent widths. We find that [C/Fe] stays flat
with [Fe/H], whereas [O/Fe] increases linearly up to dex with decreasing
[Fe/H] down to dex. As such [C/O] monotonically decreases towards
decreasing [O/H], in contrast to previous findings, mainly by virtue of less
severe non-LTE effects for Oi at low [Fe/H] with our improved calculations.Comment: 5 pages, 2 figures; published in A&A Letter
Cosmological Cosmic Rays and the observed Li6 plateau in metal poor halo stars
Very recent observations of the Li6 isotope in halo stars reveal a Li6
plateau about 1000 times above the predicted BBN abundance. We calculate the
evolution of Li6 versus redshift generated from an initial burst of
cosmological cosmic rays (CCRs) up to the formation of the Galaxy. We show that
the pregalactic production of the Li6 isotope can account for the Li6 plateau
observed in metal poor halo stars without additional over-production of Li7.
The derived relation between the amplitude of the CCR energy spectra and the
redshift of the initial CCR production puts constraints on the physics and
history of the objects, such as pop III stars, responsible for these early
cosmic rays. Consequently, we consider the evolution of Li6 in the Galaxy.
Since Li6 is also produced in Galactic cosmic ray nucleosynthesis, we argue
that halo stars with metallicities between [Fe/H] = -2 and -1, must be somewhat
depleted in Li6.Comment: 8 pages, 6 figures, version accepted for publication in Ap
The First Galaxies: Clues from Element Abundances
It has recently become possible to measure directly the abundances of several
chemical elements in a variety of environments at redshifts up to z = 5. In
this review I summarise the latest observations of Lyman break galaxies, damped
Lyman alpha systems and the Lyman alpha forest with a view to uncovering any
clues which these data may offer to the first episodes of star formation. The
picture which is emerging is one where the universe at z = 3 already included
many of the components of today's galaxies--even at these early times we see
evidence for Populations I and II stars, while the `smoking gun' for Population
III objects may be hidden in the chemical composition of the lowest density
regions of the IGM, yet to be deciphered.Comment: 15 pages, LaTex, 8 Postscript Figures. To appear in the Philosophical
Transactions of The Royal Society, Series
Si and Mn Abundances in Damped Lya Systems with Low Dust Content
We have measured the abundances of Zn, Si, Mn, Cr, Fe, and Ni in three damped
Lyman alpha systems at redshifts z < 1 from high resolution echelle spectra of
QSOs recorded with the Keck I telescope. In all three cases the abundances of
Cr, Fe, and Ni relative to Zn indicate low levels of dust depletions. We
propose that when the proportion of refractory elements locked up in dust
grains is less than about 50 percent, it is plausible to assume an
approximately uniform level of depletion for all grain constituents and, by
applying a small dust correction, recover the intrisic abundances of Si and Mn.
We use this approach on a small sample of damped systems for which it is
appropriate, with the aim of comparing the metallicity dependence of the ratios
[Si/Fe] and [Mn/Fe] with analogous measurements in Milky Way stars. The main
conclusion is that the relative abundances of both elements in distant galaxies
are broadly in line with expectations based on Galactic data. Si displays a
mild enhancement at low metallicities, as expected for an alpha-capture
element, but there are also examples of near-solar [Si/Fe] at [Fe/H] < -1. The
underabundance of Mn at low metallicities is possibly even more pronounced than
that in metal-poor stars, and no absorption system has yet been found where
[Mn/Fe] is solar. The heterogeneous chemical properties of damped Lyman alpha
systems, evident even from this limited set of measurements, provide further
support for the conclusion from imaging studies that a varied population of
galaxies gives rise to this class of QSO absorbers.Comment: 29 pages, LaTex, 7 Postscript Figures. Accepted for Publication in
the Astrophysical Journa
Galactic Cosmic Rays from Superbubbles and the Abundances of Lithium, Beryllium, and Boron
In this article we study the galactic evolution of the LiBeB elements within
the framework of a detailed model of the chemical evolution of the Galaxy that
includes galactic cosmic ray nucleosynthesis by particles accelerated in
superbubbles. The chemical composition of the superbubble consists of varying
proportions of ISM and freshly supernova synthesized material. The
observational trends of 6 LiBeB evolution are nicely reproduced by models in
which GCR come from a mixture of 25% of supernova material with 75% of ISM,
except for 6 Li, for which maybe an extra source is required at low
metallicities. To account for 7 Li evolution several additional sources have
been considered (neutrino-induced nucleosynthesis, nova outbursts, C-stars).
The model fulfills the energetic requirements for GCR acceleration.Comment: 25 pages, 9 figures. Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical
Journa
3D non-LTE iron abundances in FG-type dwarfs
Spectroscopic measurements of iron abundances are prone to systematic
modelling errors. We present 3D non-LTE calculations across 32 STAGGER-grid
models with effective temperatures from 5000 K to 6500 K, surface gravities of
4.0 dex and 4.5 dex, and metallicities from 3 dex to 0 dex, and study the
effects on 171 Fe I and 12 Fe II optical lines. In warm metal-poor stars, the
3D non-LTE abundances are up to 0.5 dex larger than 1D LTE abundances inferred
from Fe I lines of intermediate excitation potential. In contrast, the 3D
non-LTE abundances can be 0.2 dex smaller in cool metal-poor stars when using
Fe I lines of low excitation potential. The corresponding abundance differences
between 3D non-LTE and 1D non-LTE are generally less severe but can still reach
0.2 dex. For Fe II lines the 3D abundances range from up to 0.15 dex
larger, to 0.10 dex smaller, than 1D abundances, with negligible departures
from 3D LTE except for the warmest stars at the lowest metallicities. The
results were used to correct 1D LTE abundances of the Sun and Procyon (HD
61421), and of the metal-poor stars HD 84937 and HD 140283, using an
interpolation routine based on neural networks. The 3D non-LTE models achieve
an improved ionisation balance in all four stars. In the two metal-poor stars,
they remove excitation imbalances that amount to 250 K to 300 K errors in
effective temperature. For Procyon, the 3D non-LTE models suggest [Fe/H] = 0.11
0.03, which is significantly larger than literature values based on
simpler models. We make the 3D non-LTE interpolation routine for FG-type dwarfs
publicly available, in addition to 1D non-LTE departure coefficients for
standard MARCS models of FGKM-type dwarfs and giants. These tools, together
with an extended 3D LTE grid for Fe II from 2019, can help improve the accuracy
of stellar parameter and iron abundance determinations for late-type stars.Comment: 17 pages, 11 figures, 5 tables; arXiv abstract abridged; accepted for
publication in Astronomy & Astrophysic
Cosmic Ray Production of Lithium-6 by Structure Formation Shocks in the Early Milky Way: A Fossil Record of Dissipative Processes during Galaxy Formation
While the abundances of Be and B observed in metal-poor halo stars are well
explained as resulting from spallation of CNO-enriched cosmic rays (CRs)
accelerated by supernova shocks, accounting for the observed Li in such
stars with supernova CRs is more problematic. Here we propose that
gravitational shocks induced by infalling and merging sub-Galactic clumps
during hierarchical structure formation of the Galaxy should dissipate enough
energy at early epochs, and CRs accelerated by such shocks can provide a
natural explanation of the observed Li. In clear constrast to supernovae,
structure formation shocks do not eject freshly synthesized CNO nor Fe, so that
the only effective production channel at low metallicity is
fusion, capable of generating sufficient Li with no accompanying Be or B
and no direct correspondence with Fe. Correlations between the Li abundance
and the kinematic properties of the halo stars may also be expected in this
scenario. Further, more extensive observations of Li in metal-poor halo
stars, e.g. by the Subaru HDS or VLT/UVES, may offer us an invaluable fossil
record of dissipative dynamical processes which occurred during the formation
of our Galaxy.Comment: Ap.J. in press; 6 pages, 1 figur
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