LEGA-C stellar populations scaling relations. II: Dissecting mass-complete archaeological trends and their evolution since z~0.7 with LEGA-C and SDSS

TL;DR

This study analyzes stellar populations in galaxies at z~0.7 and compares them to local galaxies, revealing minimal evolution in stellar metallicity and age, and suggesting multiple evolutionary pathways for galaxy development.

Contribution

It provides a detailed comparison of stellar age and metallicity scaling relations between z~0.7 and present, highlighting the roles of different galaxy populations and evolutionary processes.

Findings

Negligible evolution in metallicity-mass relation for quiescent galaxies since z~0.7.

Lower mass star-forming galaxies show significant metallicity increase since z~0.7.

Median stellar ages have changed by only 2 Gyr, less than cosmic aging expectations.

Abstract

With a sample of 552 galaxies at z~0.7 from the LEGA-C survey, we investigate how current star formation influences light-weighted mean stellar ages and metallicities, and their median trends with stellar mass or velocity dispersion. The bimodality in the global age-mass relation stems from the different age distributions in the quiescent (Q) and star-forming (SF) populations. A bimodality is not observed in the stellar metallicity-mass relation, although Q and SF galaxies have different distributions in this parameter space. We identify a high-metallicity sequence populated by both Q and weakly SF galaxies. At masses below logM/Msun=10.8 the median stellar metallicity-mass relation of SF galaxies steepens, as a consequence of increasing scatter toward lower stellar metallicities for galaxies with increasing specific star formation rate at fixed mass. With a consistent analysis of SDSS DR7 spectra, accounting for aperture corrections, we quantify the evolution of the stellar age and stellar metallicity scaling relations between z=0.7 and the present. We find negligible evolution in the stellar metallicity-mass relation of Q galaxies and for logM/Msun>11 galaxies in general. Lower mass SF galaxies, instead, have typically lower metallicities than their local counterparts, indicating significant enrichment since z~0.7 in the low-mass regime. The median of the stellar ages of both the general population and Q galaxies has changed by only 2 Gyr between z=0.7 and z=0.1, less than expected from cosmic aging. Some Q galaxies must evolve passively to reach the old boundary of the local population. However, in order to explain the evolution of the median trends, both individual evolution, through rejuvenation and/or minor merging impacting the outer galaxy regions, and population evolution, through quenching of massive, metal-rich star-forming galaxies, are required. (Abridged)