Does turbulence determine the initial mass function?
Abstract
We test the hypothesis that the initial mass function (IMF) is determined by the density probability distribution function (PDF) produced by supersonic turbulence. We compare 14 simulations of star cluster formation in 50 M⊙ molecular cloud cores where the initial turbulence contains either purely solenoidal or purely compressive modes, in each case resolving fragmentation to the opacity limit to determine the resultant IMF. We find statistically indistinguishable IMFs between the two sets of calculations, despite a factor of 2 difference in the star formation rate and in the standard deviation of log (ρ). This suggests that the density PDF, while determining the star formation rate, is not the primary driver of the IMF.
Citation
Liptai , D , Price , D J , Wurster , J & Bate , M R 2017 , ' Does turbulence determine the initial mass function? ' , Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society , vol. 465 , no. 1 , pp. 105-110 . https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/stw2770
Publication
Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Status
Peer reviewed
ISSN
0035-8711Type
Journal article
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