Early-Type Disk Galaxies: Structure and Kinematics

TL;DR

This study investigates the structure and kinematics of early-type disk galaxies, revealing that their stellar disks are dynamically overheated and thicker than those in spiral galaxies, indicating past gravitational perturbations.

Contribution

It combines spectroscopic observations with N-body simulations to analyze the dynamical state and thickness of stellar disks in S0 and SBa galaxies, providing new insights into their evolution.

Findings

Stellar disks in lenticular galaxies are 'overheated' with excess velocity dispersion.

The stellar disks are substantially thicker than those in spiral galaxies.

Evidence suggests past strong gravitational perturbations affected these galaxies.

Abstract

Spectroscopic observations of three lenticular (S0) galaxies (NGC 1167, NGC 4150, and NGC 6340) and one SBa galaxy (NGC 2273) have been taken with the 6-m telescope of the Special AstrophysicalObservatory of the Russian Academy of Sciences aimed to study the structure and kinematic properties of early-type disk galaxies. The radial profiles of the stellar radial velocities and the velocity dispersion are measured. N-body simulations are used to construct dynamical models of galaxies containing a stellar disk, bulge, and halo. The masses of individual components are estimated formaximum-mass disk models. A comparison of models with estimated rotational velocities and the stellar velocity dispersion suggests that the stellar disks in lenticular galaxies are "overheated"; i.e., there is a significant excess velocity dispersion over the minimum level required to maintain the stability of the disk. This supports the hypothesis that the stellar disks of S0 galaxies were subject to strong gravitational perturbations. The relative thickness of the stellar disks in the S0 galaxies considered substantially exceed the typical disk thickness of spiral galaxies.