arXivDaily arXiv每日学术速递 周一至周五更新
arXiv 1707.04435astro-ph.GA
收藏

The Origins of [CII] Emission in Local Star-forming Galaxies

Kevin Croxall, J. D. T. Smith, Eric Pellegrini, Brent Groves, Alberto Bolatto, Rodrigo Herrera-Camus, Karin Sandstrom, Bruce T. Draine, Mark Wolfire, Lee Armus,… 展开作者

Kevin Croxall, J. D. T. Smith, Eric Pellegrini, Brent Groves, Alberto Bolatto, Rodrigo Herrera-Camus, Karin Sandstrom, Bruce T. Draine, Mark Wolfire, Lee Armus, Mederic Boquien, Bernhard Brandl, Daniel A. Dale, Maud Galametz, Leslie K. Hunt, Robert C. Kennicutt, Kathryn Kreckel, Dimitra Rigopoulou, Paul P. van der Werf, Christine D. Wilson

英文摘要:

The [CII] 158um fine-structure line is the brightest emission line observed in local star-forming galaxies. As a major coolant of the gas-phase interstellar medium, [CII] balances the heating, including that due to far-ultraviolet photons, which heat the gas via the photoelectric effect. However, the origin of [CII] emission remains unclear, because C+ can be found in multiple phases of the interstellar medium. Here we measure the fractions of [CII] emission originating in the ionized and neutral gas phases of a sample of nearby galaxies. We use the [NII] 205um fine-structure line to trace the ionized medium, thereby eliminating the strong density dependence that exists in the ratio of [CII]/[NII] 122um. Using the FIR [CII] and [NII] emission detected by the KINGFISH and Beyond the Peak Herschel programs, we show that 60-80% of [CII] emission originates from neutral gas. We find that the fraction of [CII] originating in the neutral medium has a weak dependence on dust temperature and the surface density of star formation, and a stronger dependence on the gas-phase metallicity. In metal-rich environments, the relatively cooler ionized gas makes substantially larger contributions to total [CII] emission than at low abundance, contrary to prior expectations. Approximate calibrations of this metallicity trend are provided.

机构、总结、中文摘要均由AI分析而来,可能存在错误,请以论文正文为准。

↑