Bar Diagnostics in Edge-On Spiral Galaxies. III. N-Body Simulations of Disks

By M. Bureau, E. Athanassoula. 2004

136 citations recorded by the source corpus.

Present in over 45% of local spirals, boxy and peanut-shaped bulges are generally interpreted as edge-on bars and may represent a key phase in bar evolution. Aiming to test such claims, the kinematic properties of self-consistent three-dimensional N-body simulations of bar-unstable disks are studied. Using Gauss-Hermite polynomials to describe the major-axis stellar kinematics, a number of characteristic bar signatures are identified in edge-on disks: (1) a major-axis light profile with a quasi-exponential central peak and a plateau at moderate radii (Freeman type II profile); (2) a "double-hump" rotation curve; (3) a sometimes flat central velocity dispersion peak with a plateau at moderate radii and occasional local central minimum and secondary peak; and (4) an h3-V correlation over the projected bar length. All of these kinematic features are spatially correlated and can easily be understood from the orbital structure of barred disks. They thus provide a reliable and easy-to-use tool to identify edge-on bars. Interestingly, they are all produced without dissipation and are increasingly realized to be common in spirals, lending support to bar-driven evolution scenarios for bulge formation. So called "figure-of-eight" position-velocity diagrams are never observed, as expected for realistic orbital configurations. Although not uniquely related to triaxiality, line-of-sight velocity distributions with a high-velocity tail (i.e., an h3-V correlation) appear as particularly promising tracers of bars. The stellar kinematic features identified grow in strength as the bar evolves and vary only slightly for small inclination variations. Many can be used to trace the bar length. Comparisons with observations are encouraging and support the view that boxy and peanut-shaped bulges are simply thick bars viewed edge-on.

Subfields: Astronomy and Astrophysics, Instrumentation

View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/bb14bd6cd2a675bcdd1bd7081e615511b88e6541

How researchers see this paper

The researchers whose trusted networks rank it highest, strongest advocate first. Every researcher gets a different order.

In Astronomy and Astrophysics

1. M. Cappellari
2. T. Naab
3. P. Hopkins
4. J. Kormendy
5. Frédéric Bournaud
6. L. Hernquist
7. M. Sarzi
8. M. Bureau

In Instrumentation

1. M. Cappellari
2. J. Kormendy
3. T. Naab
4. M. Bureau
5. Frédéric Bournaud
6. P. Hopkins
7. M. Sarzi
8. Eric Emsellem

Citations in the corpus

• BULGE n AND B/T IN HIGH-MASS GALAXIES: CONSTRAINTS ON THE ORIGIN OF BULGES IN HIERARCHICAL MODELS (2008, background): “Boxy/peanut bulges are believed to be the result of vertical resonances and buckling instabilities in bars, which are viewed at high inclination (Combes & Sanders 1981; Combes et al. 1990; Pfenniger & Norman 1990; Bureau & Athanassoula 2005; Athanassoula 2005; Martinez-Valpuesta et al. 2006).”
• Properties of Bars and Bulges in the Hubble Sequence (2007, background): “The strength of the peanut structure depends on bar strength so that it is strongest in strong bars (Athanassoula & Misioritis 2002; Bureau & Athanassoula 2005).”
• Mapping the three-dimensional density of the galactic bulge with VVV red clump stars (2013, background): “In principle these can be compared to images of edge on galaxies and N-body models such as Bureau & Athanassoula (2005), Bureau et al. (2006), and Martinez-Valpuesta et al. (2006).”
• The SAURON project - VI. Line strength maps of 48 elliptical and lenticular galaxies (2006, background): “This is a typical case of a close to edge-on disc galaxy showing a rapidly rotating component (Paper III) and a double sign reversal in h3, indicating a central bar (Bureau & Athanassoula 2005).”
• The ATLAS3D project - II. Morphologies, kinemetric features and alignment between photometric and kinematic axes of early-type galaxies (2011, background): “The existence of these correlated points is related to the correlation between h3 and V , typical for barred galaxies and peanut bulges (Chung & Bureau 2004; Bureau & Athanassoula 2005) Fig.”
• The SAURON project – XII. Kinematic substructures in early-type galaxies: evidence for discs in fast rotators (2008, result): “…cases, show a change from negative to positive values with increasing radius, similar to what is seen in peanut bulges andb rs (Chung & Bureau 2004; Bureau & Athanassoula 2005) The embedded flattened components in fast rotators are also evident whenh3 − V/σ diagram is compared with the results of…”
• Characterizing Bars at z ~ 0 in the Optical and NIR: Implications for the Evolution of Barred Disks with Redshift (2006, background): “Furthermore, the orbital structure of bars can lead to the observed peanut-shaped and boxy bulges in inclined galaxies (Combes et al. 1990; Pfenniger & Norman 1990; Bureau & Athanassoula 2005; Athanassoula 2005; Martinez-Valpuesta et al. 2006; Debattista et al. 2006).”
• An expanded Mbh–σ diagram, and a new calibration of active galactic nuclei masses (2010, background): “Furthermore, the simulations analysed in Bureau & Athanassoula (2005) show that these effects can be quite strong and may enhance the observed velocity dispersion by as much as 10–40 per cent, depending on the bar’s strength and orientation (Bureau & Athanassoula 2005, their fig.”
• The SAURON project – VII. Integral-field absorption and emission-line kinematics of 24 spiral galaxy bulges (2006, background): “However, the importance of dissipative processes (Bureau & Athanassoula 2005), and the role of bars (Heller & Shlosman 1994; Friedli & Benz 1995), is still unclear in this context.”
• Bars in Disk-dominated and Bulge-dominated Galaxies at z ~ 0: New Insights from ~3600 SDSS Galaxies (2007, background): “These features are commonly attributed to the orbital structure, resonances, and vertical instabilities in a barred potential (Combes et al.1990; Kuijken&Merrifield 1995; Bureau & Freeman1999; Bureau & Athanassoula 2005).”
• FORMATION OF MASSIVE GALAXIES AT HIGH REDSHIFT: COLD STREAMS, CLUMPY DISKS, AND COMPACT SPHEROIDS (2009, background): “The spheroids continue to grow according to the standard scenario; bulges develop by slow secular evolution in the disks (Bureau & Athanassoula 2005; Athanassoula 2008), and all spheroids, including today’s giant ellipticals, grow by minor and major mergers.”