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| Paper: |
Why Galaxies Care about AGB Stars: Modeling Galaxies |
| Volume: |
445, Why Galaxies Care about AGB Stars II: Shining Examples and Common Inhabitants |
| Page: |
391 |
| Authors: |
Maraston, C. |
| Abstract: |
The Thermally-Pulsating Asymptotic Giant Branch (TP-AGB) phase of
stellar evolution has received attention only recently in galaxy
evolution, but is now an important player in our understanding of
how galaxies form and evolve. Because it is a short but very luminous
phase, bright in the near-IR where dust effects are small, the
TP-AGB phase is a powerful tracer of intermediate-age stars in
galaxies up to high redshift. The spectral signature of TP-AGB
stars as defined by population synthesis models has been detected
by the Spitzer Space Telescope in high-redshift galaxies, whose
spectra show an amazing similarity to spectra of local stellar
populations. Even accounting for the high uncertainty affecting
the theoretical modelling of this phase, stellar population models
including the TP-AGB have leveraged a better determination of galaxy
ages and hence stellar masses, fundamental quantities for
studying galaxy formation and evolution. They have also improved
the results of semi-analytic models, which can better reproduce
colours and the K-band luminosity function of high-z galaxies. |
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