UC Santa Cruz

Using 0D, 1D, and 3D models of galaxies, I explore different problems in galaxy evolution most suited to each technique. In the simplest case, a galaxy is described by a few numbers integrated via coupled ordinary differential equations. By allowing the galaxies to respond to a stochastic accretion rate, I show a natural way of generating the finite scatter observed in several galaxy scaling relations: the correlation between a galaxy's stellar mass and its star formation rate or metallicity. By comparing this simple model to observations, we constrain the process by which gas accretes onto galaxies, which must occur, but is essentially impossible to observe directly. Adding an additional dimension to the models, we explore the structure of galactic disks as a function of radius. We find that turbulence driven by gravitational instability in the disks and the resulting migration of gas can explain a wide variety of phenomena, including the age-velocity dispersion correlation of stars in the solar neighborhood, the central quenching star formation in disk galaxies, rings of star formation, and the observed radial profile of gas column densities. Finally, we run a set of fully three-dimensional galaxy simulations to try to understand what physics is responsible for basic properties of galaxies, including the rate at which they form stars, and the rate at which they eject mass in large-scale winds. We find that supernovae are capable of driving moderate metal-enhanced winds, but surprisingly they have very little effect on the star formation rates of dwarf galaxies. Instead, ordinary photoelectric heating dominates the star formation law in low-mass galaxies.