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EXTRAGALACTIC STAR FORMATION
My research aims to understand the evolution of starburst galaxies and how the physical processes occurring there differ from those in the Milky Way. Through a combination of radio continuum and line data as well as chemical and radiative transfer modeling, I work to constrain the physical conditions and processes associated with star formation in extreme environments.
HCN and HNC as Feedback Tracers
My first project of my PhD (which can be found here) investigates the use of HCN and HNC to trace stellar feedback related to star formation. Using ALCHEMI measurements of the HCN and HNC ground-vibrational 1-0, 2-1, 3-2, and 4-3 transitions In NGC 253, I constrain chemical and radiative transfer models to find the best estimates of the physical conditions in the NGC 253 Giant Molecular Clouds (GMCs). We find that volume density and cosmic-ray ionization rate are constrained by our observations and that cosmic ray heating dominates the heating budget In NGC 253's Central Molecular Zone.
The NGC 253 Central Molecular Zone. White circles indicate the locations of GMCs. Colored circles denote radio continuum sources associated with star formation.
Top: Number of heating sources in each GMC. Bottom: Estimated density and cosmic ray Ionization rate (scaled by zeta_0 = 1.36e-17 /s) for each GMC.
I have extended this work to the rest of the NGC 253 by training a neural network model to replace the role of a chemical code in our algorithm. The use of neural networks Improves the efficiency of our gas parameter inference algorithm by a factor of 10, allowing us to model 10 times as many regions within the NGC 253 CMZ.
This analysis demonstrates the radial distributions of the gas parameters In the NGC 253. The cosmic-ray ionization rate, as well as the volume and column densities, peak In the center of the CMZ and decrease as you move toward the edges. The high cosmic-ray Ionization rates, up to 1e-12 s^-1, have the potential to disrupt future star formation, preventing dense gas clumps from forming, driving galactic outflows, and removing molecular gas from the galaxy.
GALACTIC STAR FORMATION
I also do research which uses chemical tracers to probe star formation on much smaller scales within our own galaxy. One focus of mine has been the IRAS 7 triple system in Perseus, which hosts 3 protostars (at least 2 of which have companions) and exhibits complex kinematics. With the help of radio data across multiple size scales, I'm using N2H+ to try to understand the chaotic formation history of this triple system.
Left: N2H+ 1--0 moment-0 map of IRAS 7 core, including protostars Per 18, Per 21, and Per 49. Red ellipses indicate locations of radio continuum knots associated with the protostars.
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