5 research outputs found
Metal Enrichment Processes in the Intra-Cluster Medium
We present numerical simulations of galaxy clusters which include interaction
processes between the galaxies and the intra-cluster gas. The considered
interaction processes are galactic winds and ram-pressure stripping, which both
transfer metal-enriched interstellar medium into the intra-cluster gas and
hence increase its metallicity. We investigate the efficiency and time
evolution of the interaction processes by simulated metallicity maps, which are
directly comparable to those obtained from X-ray observations. We find that
ram-pressure stripping is more efficient than quiet (i.e. non-starburst driven)
galactic winds in the redshift interval between 1 and 0. The expelled metals
are not mixed immediately with the intra-cluster gas, but inhomogeneities are
visible in the metallicity maps. Even stripes of higher metallicity that a
single galaxy has left behind can be seen. The spatial distribution of the
metals transported by ram-pressure stripping and by galactic winds are very
different for massive clusters: the former process yields a centrally
concentrated metal distribution while the latter results in an extended metal
distribution.Comment: accepted for publication in A&A Letters, 4 pages, 2 figure