A review of the Initial Mass Function (IMF)

Details A review of the Initial Mass Function (IMF) A review of the Initial Mass Function (IMF)

Feb 1988

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=1988stin...8828848z&link_type=abstract

Presented at the 10th IAU European Regional Astronomy Meeting, Prague, Czechoslovakia, 24-29 Aug. 1987

Astronomy and Astrophysics

Astronomy

Mass Distribution, Mass Ratios, Stellar Mass, Astronomical Models, Open Clusters, Statistical Distributions, Stellar Evolution, Stellar Luminosity

Scientific paper

The present-day mass function (PDMF) of field stars in the solar neighborhood is discussed. Major uncertainties in the derivation exist, in particular the luminosity-mass relation and the bolometric corrections. Consequently, it is not clear whether the PDMF turns over at very low masses (M less than 0.3 M solar mass), and the slope at the high-mass end (M more than 10 M solar mass) is more uncertain than usually assumed. The reality of two features in the PDMF (at M = 1.2 M solar mass and M = 3 M solar mass respectively) is an open question. The concept of a bimodal IMF is critically examined. Gusten and Mezger's (1983) and Larson's (1986) bimodal models may run into problems. If the effects of high-mass stars prevent low-mass stars from forming, the term biased IMF is a better description of the situation than bimodal IMF. The IMF is probably not universal; reported IMF variations in open clusters and globular clusters are unlikely to be spurious. The fact that the mass of a star in the making depends on many random-valued (multiplicative) input parameters suggests a stochastic rather than a deterministic approach for the origin of the IMF.

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