Open questions in the study of population III star formation

TL;DR

This paper reviews the current understanding of Population III star formation, highlighting key physical processes and discussing open questions about the physics, star multiplicity, and potential multiple formation modes.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive overview of the standard model of Population III star formation and identifies critical open questions for future research.

Findings

Massive nature of the first stars supported by current models

Uncertainties in hydrogen and helium physics affect formation theories

Open questions about star multiplicity and formation modes

Abstract

The first stars were key drivers of early cosmic evolution. We review the main physical elements of the current consensus view, positing that the first stars were predominantly very massive. We continue with a discussion of important open questions that confront the standard model. Among them are uncertainties in the atomic and molecular physics of the hydrogen and helium gas, the multiplicity of stars that form in minihalos, and the possible existence of two separate modes of metal-free star formation.