The Origins of Sub-stellar Masses: Searching for the End of the IMF

Computer Science

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Hst Proposal Id #9846 Star Formation

Scientific paper

Is there a preferred scale that defines the end of the IMF? We propose to test this hypothesis by conducting a deep spectroscopic survey of extremely low mass objects in the embedded young cluster associated with NGC1333. At a distance of only 300pc, this cluster is one of the nearest examples of a dense young cluster. We will be able to obtain R=200 spectra and photometry for 40-60 cluster members with masses between 5-40 Jupiter masses at an age of 1 Myr observed through A{v}<10 mag. This will enable us to estimate temperatures and luminosities for all sources detected in the survey. We will compare their positions in an H-R diagram to PMS evolutionary tracks in order to estimate their ages and masses. For a solar metallicity cloud at a temperature of 10 K, the minimum mass for fragmentation is thought to be 10 Jupiter masses. A statistically significant sample of objects detected below this limit would challenge the role of hierarchical fragmentation in limiting substellar masses. The proximity of this cluster combined with the unique sensitivity, wavelength coverage, and multi-object spectroscopic capability of NICMOS on HST make this experiment possible.

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