The AMBRE Project: Solar neighbourhood chemodynamical constraints on Galactic disc evolution

Abstract

We analysed the chemodynamical evolution of the Galactic disc using precise [Mg/Fe] abundances from a previous study and accurate Gaia data. For this purpose, we estimated ages and dynamical properties for 366 MSTO solar neighbourhood stars from the AMBRE Project using PARSEC isochrones together with astrometric and photometric values from Gaia DR2. We find a radial gradient of -0.099 ${\pm}$ 0.031 dex kpc$^{-1}$ for [M/H] and +0.023 ${\pm}$ 0.009 dex kpc for the [Mg/Fe] abundance. The steeper [Mg/Fe] gradient than that found in the literature is a result of the improvement of the AMBRE [Mg/Fe] estimates in the metal-rich regime. In addition, we find a significant spread of stellar age at any given [Mg/Fe] value, and observe a clear correlated dispersion of the [Mg/Fe] abundance with metallicity at a given age. While for [M/H] < -0.2, a clear age-[Mg/Fe] trend is observed, more metal-rich stars display ages from 3 up to 12 Gyr, describing an almost flat trend in the [Mg/Fe]-age relation. Moreover, we report the presence of radially migrated stars for a wide range of stellar ages, although we note the large uncertainties of the amplitude of the inferred change in orbital guiding radii. Finally, we observe the appearance of a second chemical sequence in the outer disc, 10-12 Gyr ago, populating the metal-poor, low-[Mg/Fe] tail. These stars are more metal-poor than the coexisting stellar population in the inner parts of the disc, and show lower [Mg/Fe] abundances than prior disc stars of the same metallicity, leading to a chemical discontinuity. Our data favour the rapid formation of an early disc that settled in the inner regions, followed by the accretion of external metal-poor gas -- probably related to a major accretion event such as the Gaia-Enceladus/Sausage one -- that may have triggered the formation of the thin disc population and steepened the abundance gradient in the early disc.