The EDGE-CALIFA Survey: Influence of Mergers on Radial Profiles of Star-Formation Properties

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Garay-Solis, Y., Barrera-Ballesteros, J. K., Carigi, L., Colombo, D., Sánchez, S. F., Lugo-Aranda, A. Z., Villanueva, V., Wong, T., Bolatto, A. D.
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
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author Garay-Solis, Y.
Barrera-Ballesteros, J. K.
Carigi, L.
Colombo, D.
Sánchez, S. F.
Lugo-Aranda, A. Z.
Villanueva, V.
Wong, T.
Bolatto, A. D.
author_facet Garay-Solis, Y.
Barrera-Ballesteros, J. K.
Carigi, L.
Colombo, D.
Sánchez, S. F.
Lugo-Aranda, A. Z.
Villanueva, V.
Wong, T.
Bolatto, A. D.
contents In this study, we investigate how the merging process influences the radial variations of the specific Star Formation Rate (sSFR), Star Formation Efficiency (SFE), and molecular gas fraction (fmol ) in galaxies. We analyse 33 isolated galaxies and 34 galaxies in four different merger stages from pairs, merging galaxies, post-mergers, and merger remnants. Our sample is included in the EDGE-CALIFA survey, which provides spatially resolved optical integral-field unit and CO spectroscopy data. We show that, in comparison with the isolated sample, the mergers increase the molecular gas fraction non-uniformly across different galactocentric distances. Also, we find that the main driver (efficiency or molecular gas) of both enhanced and suppressed star formation changes independently of galactocentric radius and merger stage. However, efficiency appears to be the primary driver of variations in star formation (except during the merging stage), where we find an enhancement in star formation driven by the available fuel. Our results suggest that in interacting and merging galaxies, the efficiency plays a crucial role in the star formation variations throughout the galaxy, regardless of the available molecular gas content.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2509_21852
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle The EDGE-CALIFA Survey: Influence of Mergers on Radial Profiles of Star-Formation Properties
Garay-Solis, Y.
Barrera-Ballesteros, J. K.
Carigi, L.
Colombo, D.
Sánchez, S. F.
Lugo-Aranda, A. Z.
Villanueva, V.
Wong, T.
Bolatto, A. D.
Astrophysics of Galaxies
In this study, we investigate how the merging process influences the radial variations of the specific Star Formation Rate (sSFR), Star Formation Efficiency (SFE), and molecular gas fraction (fmol ) in galaxies. We analyse 33 isolated galaxies and 34 galaxies in four different merger stages from pairs, merging galaxies, post-mergers, and merger remnants. Our sample is included in the EDGE-CALIFA survey, which provides spatially resolved optical integral-field unit and CO spectroscopy data. We show that, in comparison with the isolated sample, the mergers increase the molecular gas fraction non-uniformly across different galactocentric distances. Also, we find that the main driver (efficiency or molecular gas) of both enhanced and suppressed star formation changes independently of galactocentric radius and merger stage. However, efficiency appears to be the primary driver of variations in star formation (except during the merging stage), where we find an enhancement in star formation driven by the available fuel. Our results suggest that in interacting and merging galaxies, the efficiency plays a crucial role in the star formation variations throughout the galaxy, regardless of the available molecular gas content.
title The EDGE-CALIFA Survey: Influence of Mergers on Radial Profiles of Star-Formation Properties
topic Astrophysics of Galaxies
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2509.21852