A self-consistent semi-analytic model for Population III star formation in minihalos

Abstract

The formation of the first stars marks a watershed moment in the history of our universe. As the first luminous structures, these stars (also known as Population III, or Pop III stars) seed the first galaxies and begin the process of reionization. We construct an analytic model to self-consistently trace the formation of Pop III stars inside minihalos in the presence of the fluctuating ultraviolet background, relic dark matter-baryon relative velocities from the early universe, and an X-ray background, which largely work to suppress cooling of gas and delay the formation of this first generation of stars. We demonstrate the utility of this framework in a semi-analytic model for early star formation that also follows the transition between Pop III and Pop II star formation inside these halos. Using our new prescription for the criteria allowing Pop III star formation, we follow a population of dark matter halos from $z=50$ through $z=6$ and examine the global star formation history, finding that each process defines its own key epoch: (i) the stream velocity dominates at the highest redshifts ($z\gtrsim 30$), (ii) the UV background sets the tone at intermediate times ($30\gtrsim z\gtrsim 15$), and (iii) X-rays control the end of Pop III star formation at the latest times ($z\lesssim 15$). In all of our models, Pop III stars continue to form down to $z\sim 7-10$, when their supernovae will be potentially observable with forthcoming instruments. Finally, we identify the signatures of variations in the Pop III physics in the global 21-cm spin-flip signal of atomic hydrogen.

19 pages, 14 figures, published in MNRAS

References in corpus (15)

• The NumPy array: a structure for efficient numerical computation
• Cosmology at Low Frequencies: The 21 cm Transition and the High-Redshift Universe
• Primordial Star Formation under the Influence of Far Ultraviolet Radiation: 1540 Cosmological Halos and the Stellar Mass Distribution
• The Global 21 Centimeter Background from High Redshifts
• The Formation of the First Stars II. Radiative Feedback Processes and Implications for the Initial Mass Function
• Population III star formation in a Lambda CDM universe, II: Effects of a photodissociating background
• Suppression of H_2 Cooling in the Ultraviolet Background
• Large-scale BAO signatures of the smallest galaxies
• Metal-Free Gas Supply at the Edge of Reionization: Late-Epoch Population III Star Formation
• When did Population III star formation end?
• The formation and gas content of high redshift galaxies and minihalos
• The Effects of Population III X-ray and Radio Backgrounds on the Cosmological 21-cm Signal
• A No-Go Theorem for Direct Collapse Black Holes Without a Strong Ultraviolet Background
• Supersonic Relative Velocity between Dark Matter and Baryons: A Review
• X-ray Twinkles and Pop III Stars

Cited by in corpus (12)

• A-SLOTH reveals the nature of the first stars
• Signatures of Cosmic Ray Heating in 21-cm Observables
• Gravitational waves from mergers of Population III binary black holes: roles played by two evolution channels
• The Impact of Molecular Hydrogen Cooling on the Galaxy Formation Threshold
• A Global Semi-Analytic Model of the First Stars and Galaxies Including Dark Matter Halo Merger Histories
• Aeos: Transport of Metals from Minihalos following Population III Stellar Feedback
• The influence of baryons on low-mass haloes
• The Effects of Dark Matter Annihilation and Dark Matter-Baryon Velocity Offsets at Cosmic Dawn
• Direct Collapse Black Hole Candidates from Decaying Dark Matter
• The Baryon Budget of Galaxies across the First Billion Years
• From Dark Matter Minihalos to Large-Scale Radiative Feedback: A Self-Consistent 3D Simulation of the First Stars and Galaxies using Neural Networks
• Primordial black holes and the velocity acoustic oscillations features in 21 cm signals from the cosmic Dark Ages