Evolution and chemical yields of AGB stars: effects of low-temperature opacities

The studies focused on the Thermally-Pulsing Asymptotic Giant Branch phase experienced by low- and intermediate-mass stars are extremely important in many astrophysical contexts. In particular, a detailed computation of their chemical yields is essential for several issues, ranging from the chemical evolution of galaxies, to the mechanisms behind the formation of globular clusters. Among all the uncertainties affecting the theoretical modelling of this phase, and described in the literature, it remains to be fully clarified which results are severely affected by the use of inadequate low-temperature opacities, that are in most cases calculated on the basis of the original chemical composition of the stars, and do not consider the changes in the surface chemistry due to the occurrence of the third dredge-up and hot-bottom burning. Our investigation is aimed at investigating this point. By means of full evolutionary models including new set of molecular opacities computed specifically with the AESOPUS tool, we highlight which stellar models, among those present in the literature, need a substantial revision, mainly in relation to the predicted chemical yields. The interplay among convection, hot bottom burning and the low-temperature opacity treatment is also discussedComment: 6 pages, 2 figure

Envelope burning over-luminosity: a challenge to synthetic TP-AGB models

Until recently synthetic AGB models had not taken into account the break-down of the core mass-luminosity (Mc-L) relation due to the occurrence of envelope burning in the most massive (M > 3.5 Msun) and luminous (Mbol > -6) stars. Marigo et al. (1998) made the first attempt to consistently include the related over-luminosity effect (i.e. above the Mc-L relation) in synthetic TP-AGB calculations. In this paper the reliability of the solution scheme is tested by comparison with the results of complete evolutionary calculations for a 7 Msun AGB star undergoing envelope burning (e.g. Bloecker & Schoenberner 1991). Indeed, the method proves to be valid as it is able to reproduce with remarkable accuracy several evolutionary features of the 7 Msun star. We present extensive synthetic TP-AGB calculations for stars with initial masses of 3.5, 4.0, 4.5, and 5.0 Msun, and three choices of the initial metallicity, i.e. Z=0.019, Z=0.008, and Z=0.004. Three values of the mixing-length parameter are used, i.e. alpha=1.68, 2.0, 2.5. We investigate the dependence of envelope burning on such stellar parameters (M, Z, and alpha). The comparison between different cases gives hints on the interplay between envelope burning over-luminosity and mass loss, and related effects on TP-AGB lifetimes.Comment: 19 pages, 9 postscript figures, 2 tables, submitted to A&

Chemical yields from low- and intermediate-mass stars

We present new sets of chemical yields from low- and intermediate-mass stars with 0.8 Msun <= M <= Mup ~ 5 Msun, and three choices of the metallicity, Z=0.02, Z=0.008, and Z=0.004 (Marigo 2000, in preparation). These are then compared with the yields calculated by other authors on the basis of different model prescriptions, and basic observational constraints which should be reproduced.Comment: 6 pages, 4 postscript figures, to appear in "The chemical evolution of the Milky Way: stars versus clusters", Proceedings of the Roma-Trieste Workshop, (Vulcano, September 1999), eds. F. Matteucci and F. Giovannell

Evolution of AGB stars at varying surface C/O ratio: The crucial effect of molecular opacities

This study calls attention to the importance of properly coupling the molecular opacities to the actual surface abundances of TP-AGB stars that experience the third dredge-up and/or hot-bottom burning, i.e. with surface abundances of carbon and oxygen varying with time. New TP-AGB calculations with variable opacities -- replacing the usually adopted solar-scaled opacity tables -- have proven to reproduce, for the first time, basic observables of carbon stars, like their effective temperatures, C/O ratios, and near-infrared colours. Moreover, it turns out that the effect of envelope cooling -- due to the increase in molecular opacities -- may cause other important effects, namely: i) shortening of the C-star phase; ii) possible reduction or shut-down of the third dredge-up in low-mass carbon stars; and iii) weakening or even extinction of hot-bottom burning in intermediate-mass stars.Comment: 6 pages, 5 postscript figures, proceedings of contributed talk at the St. Luc conference ``CNO in the Universe'', eds. C. Charbonnel, D. Schaerer, & G. Meynet, to be published in the ASP Conference Serie

Population synthesis models including AGB stars and their ingredients

I will briefly review the state of the art of evolutionary population synthesis (EPS) models that include the contribution from AGB stars.Comment: 10 pages, 6 figures, review talk to the workshop "Why galaxies care about AGB stars", Vienna, August 7-11, 200

Towards simulating the photometry, chemistry, mass loss and pulsational properties of AGB star populations in resolved galaxies

Extended and updated grids of TP-AGB tracks have been implemented in the TRILEGAL population synthesis code, which generates mock stellar catalogues for a galaxy given its mass, distance, star formation history and age-metallicity relation, including also the Milky Way foreground population. Among the stellar parameters that are simulated, we now include the surface chemistry, mass-loss rates, pulsation modes and periods of LPVs. This allows us to perform a series of consistency checks between AGB model predictions and observations, that we are just starting to explore. We present a few examples of model--data comparisons, mostly regarding the near-infrared and variability data for AGB stars in the Magellanic Clouds.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures, contributed talk to the workshop "Why galaxies care about AGB stars", Vienna, August 7-11, 200

Constraining the third dredge-up via carbon stars in the Magellanic Clouds

We use the available data for Magellanic Cloud carbon stars to constrain the efficiency of the third dredge-up process in TP-AGB models. We show that star counts in LMC clusters provide quite stringent limits to the lifetime of the C-star phase, with a duration between 2 and 3 Myr for stars in the mass range from 1.5 to 2.8 Msun. Together with the luminosity functions of field C stars, this information allows us to re-calibrate the third dredge-up parameters log T_b_dred and lambda in TP-AGB models that include variable molecular opacities (Marigo 2002). Preliminary results are presented here.Comment: in proceedings of the St. Luc conference ``CNO in the Universe'', eds. C. Charbonnel, D. Schaerer, & G. Meynet, ASP Conference Series, in pres

Modelling stellar populations at high redshift

Stellar populations carry information about the formation of galaxies and their evolution up to the present epoch. A wealth of observational data are available nowadays, which are analysed with stellar population models in order to obtain key properties such as ages, star formation histories, stellar masses. Differences in the models and/or in the assumptions regarding the star formation history affect the derived properties as much as differences in the data. I shall review the interpretation of high-redshift galaxy data from a model perspective. While data quality dominates galaxy analysis at the highest possible redshifts (z>5), population modelling effects play the major part at lower redshifts. In particular, I discuss the cases of both star-forming galaxies at the peak of the cosmic star formation history as well as passive galaxies at redshift below 1 that are often used as cosmological probes. Remarks on the bridge between low and high-z massive galaxies conclude the contribution.Comment: 7 pages, 7 figures, invited review at the IAU Symposium 277 "Tracing the Ancestry of Galaxies (on the land of our ancestors)", Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso), December 2010, Editors: Claude Carignan, Francoise Combes, Ken Freema