The cluster initial mass function of the M82 disk Super Star Clusters

Abstract

The presence of a population of a large number ($\sim$400) of almost coeval (100--300 Myr) super star clusters (SSCs) in the disk of M82 offers an opportunity to construct the Cluster Initial Mass Function (CIMF) from the observed present-day Cluster Mass Function (CMF). We carry out the dynamical and photometric evolution of the CMF assuming the clusters move in circular orbits under the gravitational potential of the host galaxy using the semi-analytical simulation code EMACSS. We explore power-law and log-normal functions for the CIMFs, and populate the clusters in the disk assuming uniform, power-law, and exponential radial distribution functions. We find that the observed CMF is best produced by a CIMF that is power-law in form with an index of 1.8, for a power-law radial distribution function. More importantly, we establish that the observed turn-over in the present-day CMF is the result of observational incompleteness rather than due to dynamically induced effects, or an intrinsically log-normal CIMF, as was proposed for the fossil starburst region B of this galaxy. Our simulations naturally reproduce the mass-radius relation observed for a sub-sample of M82 SSCs.Comment: 17 pages, 11 figures, accepted to be published on MNRA