arXiv · astro-ph/0311383
The Tilt of the Fundamental Plane: Three-quarters Structural Nonhomology, One-quarter Stellar Population
Abstract
The variation of the mass-to-light ratios M/L of early type galaxies as function of their luminosities L is investigated. It is shown that the tilt beta=0.27 (in the B--band) of the fundamental plane relation M/L ~ L^{beta} can be understood as a combination of two effects: about one-quarter (i.e. dbeta =0.07) is a result of systematic variations of the stellar population properties with increasing luminosity. The remaining three-quarters (i.e. dbeta =0.2) can be completely attributed to nonhomology effects that lead to a systematic change of the surface brightness profiles with increasing luminosity. Consequently, the observed tilt in the K-band (beta=0.17) where stellar population effects are negligible, is explained by nonhomology effects alone. After correcting for nonhomology, the mean value of the mass-to-light ratio of elliptical galaxies (M/L_B) is 7.1+-2.8 (1 sigma scatter).
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I. Trujillo, A. Burkert, Eric. F. Bell. 2004-01-09. The Tilt of the Fundamental Plane: Three-quarters Structural Nonhomology, One-quarter Stellar Population. https://doi.org/10.1086/381528
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