Aims. Thanks to the high angular resolution, sensitivity, image fidelity, and frequency coverage of ALMA, we aim to improve our understanding of star formation. One of the breakthroughs expected from ALMA, which is the basis of our Cycle 5 ALMA-IMF Large Program, is the question of the origin of the initial mass function (IMF) of stars. Here we present the ALMA-IMF protocluster selection, first results, and scientific prospects. Methods. ALMA-IMF imaged a total noncontiguous area of ~53 pc 2 , covering extreme, nearby protoclusters of the Milky Way. We observed 15 massive (2.5 −33 × 10 3 M ⊙ ), nearby (2−5.5 kpc) protoclusters that were selected to span relevant early protocluster evolutionary stages. Our 1.3 and 3 mm observations provide continuum images that are homogeneously sensitive to point-like cores with masses of ~0.2 M ⊙ and ~0.6 M ⊙ , respectively, with a matched spatial resolution of ~2000 au across the sample at both wavelengths. Moreover, with the broad spectral coverage provided by ALMA, we detect lines that probe the ionized and molecular gas, as well as complex molecules. Taken together, these data probe the protocluster structure, kinematics, chemistry, and feedback over scales from clouds to filaments to cores. Results. We classify ALMA-IMF protoclusters as Young (six protoclusters), Intermediate (five protoclusters), or Evolved (four proto-clusters) based on the amount of dense gas in the cloud that has potentially been impacted by H II region(s). The ALMA-IMF catalog contains ~700 cores that span a mass range of ~0.15 M ⊙ to ~250 M ⊙ at a typical size of ~2100 au. We show that this core sample has no significant distance bias and can be used to build core mass functions (CMFs) at similar physical scales. Significant gas motions, which we highlight here in the G353.41 region, are traced down to core scales and can be used to look for inflowing gas streamers and to quantify the impact of the possible associated core mass growth on the shape of the CMF with time. Our first analysis does not reveal any significant evolution of the matter concentration from clouds to cores (i.e., from 1 pc to 0.01 pc scales) or from the youngest to more evolved protoclusters, indicating that cloud dynamical evolution and stellar feedback have for the moment only had a slight effect on the structure of high-density gas in our sample. Furthermore, the first-look analysis of the line richness toward bright cores indicates that the survey encompasses several tens of hot cores, of which we highlight the most massive in the G351.77 cloud. Their homogeneous characterization can be used to constrain the emerging molecular complexity in protostars of high to intermediate masses. Conclusions. The ALMA-IMF Large Program is uniquely designed to transform our understanding of the IMF origin, taking the effects of cloud characteristics and evolution into account. It will provide the community with an unprecedented database with a high legacy value for protocluster clouds, filaments, cores, hot cores, outflows, inflows, and stellar clusters studies.
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CARMA-NRO Orion Survey: Unbiased Survey of Dense Cores and Core Mass Functions in Orion A
Abstract The mass distribution of dense cores is a potential key to understanding the process of star formation. Applying dendrogram analysis to the CARMA-NRO Orion C 18 O ( J = 1–0) data, we identify 2342 dense cores, about 22% of which have virial ratios smaller than 2 and can be classified as gravitationally bound cores. The derived core mass function (CMF) for bound starless cores that are not associate with protostars has a slope similar to Salpeter’s initial mass function (IMF) for the mass range above 1 M ⊙ , with a peak at ∼0.1 M ⊙ . We divide the cloud into four parts based on decl., OMC-1/2/3, OMC-4/5, L1641N/V380 Ori, and L1641C, and derive the CMFs in these regions. We find that starless cores with masses greater than 10 M ⊙ exist only in OMC-1/2/3, whereas the CMFs in OMC-4/5, L1641N, and L1641C are truncated at around 5–10 M ⊙ . From the number ratio of bound starless cores and Class II objects in each subregion, the lifetime of bound starless cores is estimated to be 5–30 freefall times, consistent with previous studies for other regions. In addition, we discuss core growth by mass accretion from the surrounding cloud material to explain the coincidence of peak masses between IMFs and CMFs. The mass accretion rate required for doubling the core mass within a core lifetime is larger than that of Bondi–Hoyle accretion by a factor of order 2. This implies that more dynamical accretion processes are required to grow cores.
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- Award ID(s):
- 1714710
- NSF-PAR ID:
- 10428182
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series
- Volume:
- 264
- Issue:
- 2
- ISSN:
- 0067-0049
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- 35
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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- Free Publicly Accessible Full Text
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Accepted Manuscript1.0
- Journal Article:
- https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4365/aca4d4
