Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astrophysics
Scientific paper
2008-06-03
Astronomy and Astrophysics
Astrophysics
Accepted to ApJ Letters, 5 pages, 4 figures
Scientific paper
10.1086/590344
Current models of galaxy evolution suggest that feedback from active galactic nuclei is needed to explain the high-luminosity cutoff in the galaxy luminosity function. Exactly how an AGN outflow couples with the ambient medium and suppresses star formation remains poorly understood. However, we have recently uncovered an important clue to how that coupling might work. Observations of H-alpha emission and blue light from the universe's most luminous galaxies, which occupy the centers of galaxy clusters, show that star formation happens only if the minimum specific entropy of the intracluster gas is less than 30 keV cm^2. Here we suggest that this threshold for star formation is set by the physics of electron thermal conduction, implying that conduction is critical for channeling AGN energy input toward incipient star-forming regions and limiting the progress of star formation.
Cavagnolo Kenneth W.
Donahue Megan
McNamara Brian R.
Nulsen Paul E. J.
Rafferty David A.
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