SDSS-IV MaNGA: drivers of stellar metallicity in nearby galaxies

TL;DR

This study analyzes spatially resolved stellar metallicities in nearly 7,500 nearby galaxies from SDSS-IV MaNGA, revealing local relations with stellar density and radius, and suggesting additional drivers of metallicity beyond surface mass density.

Contribution

It provides a detailed, statistically robust exploration of local stellar metallicity relations across galaxy types and masses, extending beyond global trends.

Findings

Significant resolved mass density-metallicity relation for galaxies above 10^9.8 M_sun.

Metallicity increases with radius at fixed surface mass density in low and intermediate mass galaxies.

Radial dependence of metallicity in high-mass galaxies is confined to high-density regions of spirals.

Abstract

The distribution of stellar metallicities within and across galaxies is an excellent relic of the chemical evolution across cosmic time. We present a detailed analysis of spatially resolved stellar populations based on $>2.6$ million spatial bins from 7439 nearby galaxies in the SDSS-IV MaNGA survey. To account for accurate inclination corrections, we derive an equation for morphology dependent determination of galaxy inclinations. Our study goes beyond the well-known global mass-metallicity relation and radial metallicity gradients by providing a statistically sound exploration of local relations between stellar metallicity $[Z/H]$, stellar surface mass density $\Sigma_\star$ and galactocentric distance in the global mass-morphology plane. We find a significant resolved mass density-metallicity relation $\rm r\Sigma_\star ZR$ for galaxies of all types and masses above $10^{9.8}\,\mathrm{M_\odot}$. Different radial distances make an important contribution to the spread of the relation. Particularly, in low and intermediate mass galaxies, we find that at fixed $\Sigma_\star$ metallicity increases with radius independently of morphology. For high masses, this radial dependence is only observed in high $\Sigma_\star$ regions of spiral galaxies. This result calls for a driver of metallicity, in addition to $\Sigma_\star$ that promotes chemical enrichment in the outer parts of galaxies more strongly than in the inner parts. We discuss gas accretion, outflows, recycling and radial migration as possible scenarios.