• The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.44 no.1
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• pp.68.3-68.3
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• 2019

Even though the initial mass function (IMF) of the first generation of stars played important roles in reionization of the universe, subsequent star formation, and chemical enrichment of the universe, it is still very uncertain. In this study, among the several indirect ways of estimating the IMF of the population III (Pop III) stars, we make use of extremely metal-poor (EMP; [Fe/H] < -3.0) stars in the Milky Way, in order to infer the characteristic mass range of Pop III stars. As the progenitors of many of the EMP stars are known to be Pop III stars, we attempt to construct the characteristic mass range of the progenitors (e.g., Pop III stars) of the EMP stares by comparing their observed abundance pattern of various chemical elements with chemical yields from supernova models.

• The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.46 no.1
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• pp.52.2-52.2
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• 2021

The Black Eye Galaxy M64 is an intriguing spiral galaxy with a Type III disk break. To trace the origin of its Type III component, we present HST/ACS F606W/F814W photometry of resolved stars in the outer disk of M64 (2.5' < R < 6.5'). First, we discover a bright extended globular cluster (GC) M64-GC1 at R ~ 5.5', and find that it is an old metal-poor halo GC ([Fe/H] = -1.5 +/- 0.2). Second, we find that there are two distinct subpopulations of red giant branch stars (RGBs). One is an old metal-rich ([Fe/H] ~ -0.4) disk population, and the other is an old metal-poor halo population similar to the resolved stars in M64-GC1. The radial number density profile of the metal-rich RGB follows an exponential disk law, while that of the metal-poor RGB follows a de Vaucouleurs's low. From these results, we conclude that the origin of the Type III component in M64 is a halo, not a disk or a bulge. We will further discuss the results in regards to the formation and evolution of M64.

• The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.38 no.2
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• pp.38.1-38.1
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• 2013

We present the Yonsei evolutionary population synthesis (YEPS) models based on the high-resolution empirical spectral energy distributions (SEDs). We have adopted the MILES library in the optical wavelength, and our new models based on the MILES library show good agreements with our previous models presented in the YEPS I. The effect of hot horizontal-branch (HB) stars on the integrated properties of simple stellar populations (SSPs) is again confirmed by our models based on empirical SEDs. In addition, we have extended our empirical models to the near-IR wavelength and predicted the strengths of the calcium II triplet (CaT) and the Paschen triplet (PaT) based on the INDO-US and the Cenarro library. We find that the effect of HB stars and the age of SSPs on the CaT is almost negligible. On the other hands, the PaT models are very sensitive to the existence of hot stars, e.g., HB stars and young turn-off stars, and show very similar results with Balmer lines. Interestingly, the CaT distribution of GCs in NGC 1407, which is at odds with the optical (B-I) color distribution, can be explained by the unique feature of the CaT-[Fe/H] relations that show almost the same equivalent widths in the metal-rich regime. We will also discuss the impact of the second-generation populations on the strength of the CaT.

• The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.42 no.2
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• pp.64.2-64.2
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• 2017

The Population III (Pop III) stars are thought to be massive. If massive Pop III stars form binary system and they experience mass transfer via the Roche lobe overflow, this may significantly change the properties of the system. For example, mass transfer in such system may shorten the period of the system, forming short period binary black hole (BBH) system, which is the most promising candidate for recently detected gravitational wave radiation sources. Also, there is an expectation that due to the stripped envelope of donor star by mass transfer, this system can play a significant role in the cosmic reionization by emitting more UV photons. However, this outcome highly depends on the initial properties of the system. We perform grid calculation on Pop III binary models with various initial primary masses (20 ~ 100 solar mass), initial separations, and initial mass ratios (q = 0.5 ~ 0.9). We find that 1) in most cases binary models show no increase in the number of ionizing photons and 2) formation of short period BBH system via mass transfer is highly unlikely.

• The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.36 no.2
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• pp.72.2-72.2
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• 2011

We have performed the first self-consistent, large-scale simulation of cosmic reionization by stellar sources, including the Population III stars that emerged and were hosted by minihalos at very high redshifts (z~40). Based on this result, we calculate the redshifted radiation background from these stars and the relic H II regions which can be observed at near-infrared and infrared regime. Formation of the first stars inside minihalos are quenched by radiative feedback at z~15, while the relic H II regions have much longer lifetime due to the slow recombination rate. Therefore, the radiation output from the relic H II regions, dominated by Lyman alpha photons, will be observed both in the near-infrared and infrared regime. The estimated background from the first stars inside minihalos are still sub-dominant compared to that from stars inside larger halos, however, and thus complementary observations are necessary, such as redshifted 21-cm line observation.

• Publications of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.30 no.2
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• pp.267-268
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• 2015

One of the long-standing problems in modern astronomy is the curious division of globular clusters (GCs) into two groups, according to the mean period (<$P_{ab}$>) of type ab RR Lyrae variables. In light of the recent discovery of multiple populations in GCs, we suggest a new model explaining the origin of the Sandage period-shift and the difference in mean period of type ab RR Lyrae variables between the two Oosterhoff groups. In our models, the instability strip in the metal-poor group II clusters, such as M15, is populated by second generation stars (G2) with enhanced helium and CNO abundances, while the RR Lyraes in the relatively metal-rich group I clusters like M3 are mostly produced by first generation stars (G1) without these enhancements. This population shift within the instability strip with metallicity can create the observed period-shift between the two groups, since both helium and CNO abundances play a role in increasing the period of RR Lyrae variables. The presence of more metal-rich clusters having Oosterhoff-intermediate characteristics, such as NGC 1851, as well as of most metal-rich clusters having RR Lyraes with the longest periods (group III) can also be reproduced, as more helium-rich third and later generations of stars (G3) penetrate into the instability strip with further increase in metallicity. Therefore, although there are systems where the suggested population shift cannot be a viable explanation, for the most general cases, our models predict that RR Lyraes are produced mostly by G1, G2, and G3, respectively, for the Oosterhoff groups I, II, and III.

• The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.39 no.1
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• pp.81.2-81.2
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• 2014

To figure out the effect of rotation on the final mass of Pop III stars, 1D stellar evolution simulations of the evolution of mass-accreting protostars are performed, with zero metalicity and high constant mass accretion rates. The protostar reaches the Keplerian rotation very soon after the onset of mass accretion, but it may continue mass accretion via angular momentum transport induced by viscous stress or magnetic field. However, as the accreting star evolves, the envelope expands rapidly when the total mass reaches $5{\sim}6M_{\odot}$ and the corresponding Eddington factor sharply increases. Strong radiative pressure with rotation imposes different criteria for breakup at the stellar surface, and the so-called 'critical rotation (${\Omega}{\Gamma}$-limit)' is reached. As a result mass accretion rate has to be significantly lowered. This implies that characteristic masses of Pop III stars would be significantly lowered than the previous expectation.

• Journal of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.38 no.2
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• pp.23-31
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• 2005

CN and CH band strengths for fourteen bright giants in the globular cluster M71 have been measured from archival spectra obtained with the Multiple Mirror Telescope. Adding the collected. data from the literature we confirm a bimodality of CN distribution on the red giant branch and the honzontal branch, and CN-CH anti-correlations on the lower giant branch and horizontal branch. However a CN-CH anti-correlation on the upper red giant branch is not quite clear as those of other branches. The small number If statistics could not be excluded as a possible cause. To confirm this, a greater number of sample stars are needed. We also confirm that the ratio of CN-strong to CN-weak stars is quite different from that in 47 Tuc, although the anti-correlation between CN and CH bands, the bimodality of the CN distribution, and the spatial distribution of CN stars in M71 are found to be similar to those III 47 Tuc.

• The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.42 no.1
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• pp.59.1-59.1
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• 2017

Massive Population III black hole binary systems are one of the suggested candidate sources of the recently detected gravitational wave radiation (GWR). GWR detection from a black hole binary system requires a sufficiently short orbital separation at the time of their formation, such that they would undergo coalescence within the Hubble time. This condition cannot be simply fulfilled by a short initial period, because binary interactions such as mass transfer and common envelope evolution can largely change the orbital parameters and the masses of stellar components. Here, we discuss the possibility of black hole binary mergers from massive Pop III binary systems, using a new grid of Pop III binary evolutionary models with various initial primary masses ($20M_{\odot}{\leq}M{\leq}100M_{\odot}$) and initial separations, for different initial mass ratios (q = 0.5 - 0.9).

• The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.39 no.2
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• pp.67.2-67.2
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• 2014

The presence of multiple populations is now well-established in most globular clusters in the Milky Way. In light of this progress, here we suggest a new model explaining the origin of the Sandage period-shift and the difference in mean period of type ab RR Lyrae variables between the two Oosterhoff groups. In our models, the instability strip in the metal-poor group II clusters, such as M15, is populated by second generation stars (G2) with enhanced helium and CNO abundances, while the RR Lyraes in the relatively metal-rich group I clusters like M3 are mostly produced by first generation stars (G1) without these enhancements. This population shift within the instability strip with metallicity can create the observed period-shift between the two groups, since both helium and CNO abundances play a role in increasing the period of RR Lyrae variables. The presence of more metal-rich clusters having Oosterhoff-intermediate characteristics, such as NGC 1851, as well as of most metal-rich clusters having RR Lyraes with longest periods (group III) can also be reproduced, as more helium-rich third and later generations of stars (G3) penetrate into the instability strip with further increase in metallicity. Therefore, although there are systems where the suggested population shift cannot be a viable explanation, for the most general cases, our models predict that the RR Lyraes are produced mostly by G1, G2, and G3, respectively, for the Oosterhoff groups I, II, and III.