GASTRO library II: Exploring Chemical Bimodalities in Disk Galaxies with GSE-like Mergers and Massive Star-forming Clumps

TL;DR

This study uses hydrodynamical simulations to explore how early clumpy phases and specific mergers influence chemical bimodality and star formation in Milky Way-like galaxies, supporting the idea that early clumpy disks are galaxy progenitors.

Contribution

It demonstrates that early clumpy phases or retrograde mergers can produce MW-like chemical bimodality, highlighting the role of these events in galaxy evolution.

Findings

Early clumpy phases reduce star formation, creating chemical bimodality.

Retrograde mergers also reduce SFR and induce bimodality.

Prograde radial mergers do not significantly affect chemical bimodality.

Abstract

We use several smoothed particle hydrodynamics+N-body models as part of the GASTRO library to study the role of high-density star-forming clumpy regions and a single merger on the formation of the $\alpha$-rich and $\alpha$-poor populations in the disk galaxies. These experiments are tailored to mimic what is expected to be the Gaia-Sausage/Enceladus (GSE) accretion event, which occurred circa 10 Gyr ago in the Milky Way (MW). We find that either an early clumpy phase or a retrograde merger significantly reduces the star formation rate (SFR) of the disk, giving rise to a chemical bimodality qualitatively similar to the MW's. The decrease of the SFR as the cause of the chemical bimodality is consistent with previous idealized and cosmological simulations. On the other hand, a prograde radial merger does not significantly modify the SFR of the disk, resulting in no clear chemical bimodality. We further show that stars originating from the inner regions ($R_{form}<4$ kpc) do not create the disk's chemical bimodality, although they can enhance it. Finally, only the models with an early clumpy phase can produce a significant fraction of old, age $>11$ Gyr, $\alpha-$poor stars with disk-like orbits, similar to what has been recently observed in the MW. Our results strengthen the case of clumpy disky galaxies observed at redshift $z\approx 1-2$ as likely progenitors of our Galaxy.